The Gossamer Touch
by Stunned Monkey
Summary: Jade is having nightmares. They are affecting her entire life. She can't find answers to the mysteries that are destroying her life. When she meets a strange new girl she starts to find answers and more questions. Who are these people trying to kill them? How will she defend this girl? Rated M for graphic violence. There I apologise for nothing!
1. Chapter 1: The Slow Vanish

**AN: I do not own or operate the characters from Victorious. I just keep them alive. Someone else owns them and has already made a fortune from them. **

**I am not that good at containing my writing to shorter stories, but I am working on it. I hope you like it.**

**Enjoy S.M.**

The Gossamer Touch

Chapter 1: The Slow Vanish

Hi my name is Jade West and I am not normal. Well I was normal for a big part of my life, or at least I thought that I was. I went through my early school years just like every other dorky girl. I was a bit smarter than the others in my class and I often wrote stories that were different than the others, but I was still passing as normal. In junior high no one noticed, because everyone is geeky and dorky in junior high school. Then I auditioned for the famous Hollywood Arts School.

It wasn't odd that I auditioned, it was odd that I got in. That is when things started to change for me. That is when others started to think I was weird.

My life was moved by a movie that I snuck in to the theatre to see. The movie was a horror movie called "The Scissoring". I started to listen to Goth music and wearing a lot of black. For me it was a way to keep people away from me. If people stayed away then they wouldn't be able to get close enough to hurt me.

My family was a train wreck. Mom and Dad fought nonstop. They stopped caring if I was around or not so I spent a lot of time out of the house and just being away.

I seemed to scare people. That gave me power over them. I could have them around and then chase them off. I could control all situations, unlike at home. Soon I managed to push everyone away except for a small group of people who I would consider to be "different" too.

I had only one friend and that was Cat Valentine. Well saying that Cat was a friend was really a misnomer. She was a strange girl who had a lot of insecurities. She lived with her mother and brother. Her mother was as messed up as she was and her brother was psychotic.

She died her hair the same color as red velvet cupcakes one of her favourite foods. That was the way she was very spontaneous and very insecure. She was afraid of her own shadow most days, until you got her really riled up. Then she was a stick of dynamite.

Cat is more like a pet than a friend. I spend most of my time trying to keep her out of trouble and explaining things she doesn't understand. A good part of my day is spent doing that.

We have been friends since the second grade. A boy was trying to get her to show him her underwear for a quarter. I beat the crap out of him and took his quarter. Later I told her not to show the boys her underwear anymore. I gave her the quarter and she lifted her frilly dress and showed me. I knew right then and there that my life job would be looking after this crazy girl.

I met the others when I moved to Hollywood Arts. I met Andrè and Beck in my first class. I was forced to do a group assignment with them. They were not that bad as guys go so I kept them around. I found that I was comfortable around Beck and soon we were going out together.

It was a rough ride. We fought a lot and even when we made up we kept score and hurt each other. Truth be known we broke up three times. Most would tell you two times, but there was a weekend where we broke up and got back together before the weekend was over.

Then one week it just fell apart and we both knew it was over and we would never be able to put the pieces back together again. We were done. We try to be friends, but it is a lot of work and takes far too much energy most days. I try to avoid him as much as possible.

I was looking for something or someone. I couldn't even put into words the feeling that I had. I felt like I was meant to meet someone and protect them. I didn't know who or even why.

I started having these strange dreams about the time I turned fifteen. It wasn't every night, but it was at least twice a week. I was running holding the hand of someone dragging them behind me. I was never able to see the person's face.

In my dream I knew that my duty was to protect this life. I never knew what I was protecting this person from, but I knew I would put my life on the line for this being. Sometimes I would find myself fighting back. I seemed to be swinging something, maybe a club or a stick. I had to fight back against something.

Every time I had those dreams I would wake up in a cold sweat. I would be trying to scream someone's name, but I couldn't. For a second I had the name on the tip of my tongue but when I would wake up I lose the name. I dissolved in my mouth before I could say it out loud.

I tried everything to exercise these dreams. I even let Cat talk me into letting this student that creeps on me all the time to hypnotise me. I made sure I took Cat with me so that Sinjin Van Cleef, that little worm, didn't have me undress or something worse.

He was not able to find anything out. It was like it was blocked so that he could not unlock the door that it was all hid behind. I was hoping that he would at least be able to give me a name, but he was not able to do that.

He asked me who it was that I was protecting and according to Cat I told him that he had no right to ask that question and that he should mind his own business. I then supposedly told him that asking too many questions could get him killed. When he asked who would want to kill him. I just laughed an evil laugh and told him I would kill him in a heartbeat and he would never see it coming.

I even went to a couple of different psychiatrists and psychologists but even though had lots of theories they were still not able to stop the nightmares and solve the mystery of the missing name. I was becoming more and more withdrawn and depressed.

I was sure that I would have to suffer this alone and the few friends that I had would slowly drift away from me and I would be alone.

Although I would never admit it to anyone, I spent a number of nights crying in my room in the dark. It was like an illness that I could never be cured of and that I would have to live with this hollowness I felt for the rest of my life.

I stopped enjoying food so I stopped eating. I was living on coffee and junk food. Cat finally told me that everyone was worried about my health. She said that I looked terrible.

When I looked in the mirror I hardly recognized myself. My skin was wrinkled and as thin as paper. I, like my spirit, was becoming transparent. Soon I would disappear altogether. My eyes looked like road maps covered with scattered red highways. Even my gums were bleeding. I was losing ground quickly.

Beck and Andrè soon stopped calling and asking me to join them. Cat was trying hard to be a good friend, but even she was starting to move away from me. I don't blame them. I didn't even want to be around me anymore.

I was failing my classes and I didn't even care. I spent most of my days and nights sketching scenes from my dreams in notebooks. I would draw the entire scene in delicate detail, but when I would go to draw the face of the person at the end of my arm there would be a blank spot.

I had to find a way out of this. I had to find a way to save myself, but how?

**AN: Well there you go the first chapter of a story that is running around in my head. I am a bit like Jade in this story. I am not really sure where the words will take me, but I know it will be a fun ride. Let me know what you think. If you liked this story try some of my other stuff. Thanks S.M.**


	2. Chapter 2: Escaping the Freak Show

**AN: I do not own or operate the characters from Victorious. I just keep them alive. Someone else owns them and has already made a fortune from them. **

**I am not that good at containing my writing to shorter stories, but I am working on it. I hope you like it.**

**Enjoy S.M.**

Chapter 2: Escaping the Freak Show

I parked my car in the lot as per usual and grabbed my bag and coffee and stumbled toward the school. I went to my locker. For a moment I admired the collection of scissors that I have mounted on the door and then I opened it.

There was a commotion off to my right. I figured it was just some of the geeks acting out again. Most of the students here are extroverts and have no problem having people look at them. In fact that is their goal. They all wanted to be super stars in some field of the arts.

I got my books and picked my coffee up and turned to head to class. That is when I saw what the commotion was all about. A new student. I am always amazed by how wound up some people get when a new student comes to a school. It is like they have brought news from the outside world, everyone has to have a piece of them.

From what I could see past André and Cat she was a slight girl with long dark hair and a very bright smile. I would have rushed over to her side and begged for my scraps of attention, but I wasn't that kind of a person before my life fell apart let alone now. I could care less. This was just another girl to get in my way in the bathroom.

I went to my drama class with my weirdest teacher, Erwin Sikowitz. At first glance most people would make the mistake of calling Sikowitz a hippy. He was far stranger than any hippy. He had an addiction to drinking coconut juice from the shell. He said it gave him creative visions.

I liked this strange man. He was crazy on the surface but underneath way down where most couldn't see it or were too lazy to see he was very insightful and brilliant. I learned to watch people when they didn't think I was watching, from this funny man. He showed me how to disappear in a room full of people without going anywhere.

He often said, "Jade there is something about you. I don't know what it is, but there is something different about you."

I was never sure if he could actually see something in me or if he was just trying to inspire me to become more than the dark moody girl most people see.

I dropped my bag on the floor and then threw myself in my seat. I always sat in the same seat and at one time my friends sat around me, but now no one sat near me. I guess the new me repelled them like similar magnets.

Sikowitz loved group work. I swear he did it just to piss me off because he knew I hate group work. I hate it because you have to work with someone else. It always ended up the same. You are required to spend time with the other person and in the end you end up doing all the work while they touch your belongings in your room.

Today Sikowitz had us sit on the floor facing a partner. It was going to be this goofy mirror exercise that every actor has done a million times. I managed to get Cat as a partner. André was the one that won the right to work with the new girl.

Cat and I went through the motions of the exercise and about half way through I got tired of the crap and I grabbed Cat's hand to stop her from waving them in front of my face.

I had never had anything like this happen to me before. My eyes suddenly went black and my hand locked around Cat's wrist. I tried to let go but I couldn't break my grip no matter how much I willed it. Then images started flashing in my mind. I could make out Cat's face and she was talking to Robbie and then he stumbled and fell down the stairs.

As soon as it started it was over. It was like a blast of electricity blew my hand off Cat's wrist. When my eyes cleared and I was able to see again, Cat was rubbing her wrist and had a frown on her face.

I didn't know why, but I found that I had to apologies to Cat. "I am sorry Cat. I don't know what happened. I couldn't let go."

"You hurt my wrist Jade. Why would you hurt my wrist? Don't hurt my wrist anymore Jade." She sat there with a pout on her face rubbing the red marks on her wrist.

"I don't know what happened. I ah saw ah… never mind. I won't do it again." I tried to make her feel better.

I just gathered my things and left the room. I rushed down the hall to the bathroom. When I got there I looked in the mirror and ran the water. I cupped my hands to gather water and that is when I saw them. The veins of my hands were dark and standing out on my palms. No one's veins are evident on their palms.

When I was staring at my veins with water running over them that was when it started to come to me. I could feel something. It was not something that was connected to me, but Cat. It was like I had a residue of her still on my hands.

I closed my eyes and images started to develop in my mind. I could see not Cat, but what some religious types might call her soul or spirit. Others might say it was her Chi or her aura. All I know is when I saw this image I knew the real Cat. I could feel her past and her future. It was not details that I could see or feel but the emotions of her past and future.

I could feel the sadness and pain of Cat's past and the joy of her present. I could also tell that she was going to have a successful future and have someone to make her happy.

The other thing I knew was that all of what I was seeing and feeling was very real. If someone told me about this I would never believe them, but it was me and I knew it was real.

Okay so I could see her past and future and was in touch with her soul, but why? What the hell was I supposed to do with this information? This was not bringing me any closer to solving my problem with nightmares, in fact it was all adding to it.

I ran cool water over my hands and they started to feel better. I could see the veins returning to normal. I splashed a little water on my face and after drying myself I reapplied my makeup where it was needed. I looked in the mirror and saw the same girl staring back, but who was she? What was she?

I had every intention of returning to my classes, but as I stepped out of the bathroom I could see by the clock in the hall that classes would be breaking up in about two minutes. Something inside of me told me that I didn't want to deal with this right now. I didn't want to face all the questions Cat and the others would have. It was a normal reaction to want to know what went on, but I couldn't tell them and it scared me.

Instead of heading to class or to my locker I ran to the janitor's closet. This was my refuge. This is where I came when I was stressed or had to get away. Leo, the janitor and I had a deal. I could hang out in his room if every now and then I brought him a small bag of weed. He said he needed it for his bad back. I didn't care if he was re-enacting Woodstock as long as we had a deal.

It worked in his favour too. The students knew that I used this as my "office" and there was no way they were going to go in there and rifle through stuff. They were afraid of what the wrath of Jade West might bring down on their heads. He never had to lock the door because all was safe on my watch.

I crouched against the wall and held my knees to my chest and leaned my head back against the wall with my eyes closed. What the hell happened back there? What happened to me? What does it mean?

I spent a long time trying to find answers to these questions and a lot more, but came away with nothing. I had no idea how much time had gone by, but I knew I was ready to leave my fortress of solitude.

The bell rang as I stepped out of the janitor's room. I must have been in there for over two hours because the morning was over and the other students were filing out of classrooms heading for lunch. I turned to see André and the new girl rounding the corner together.

She must have thought I had escaped a freak show. I couldn't face them so I turned and saw Robbie and Cat coming down the stairs. Cat waved to me like I had been away at war for a lifetime. Robbie continued to tell her about a movie he went to the night before. That was when I realized that I had seen all this before.

At first it was like Déjà vu, but then my hand started hurting again. No this was no trick of the mind. I did see this. I saw it when I was connected to Cat.

I was about to warn Robbie when a small blonde girl came running down the stairs and passed the two of them on the stairs. Cat was able to move out of the way, but Robbie was knocked off his feet and was now rolling down the stairs. I tried to close my eyes and not see it again, but I was too late he was now laying on the floor and someone stepped on his hand.

As Beck helped Robbie up to his feet I was left asking myself why I knew that was going to happen. What good did it do knowing that he was going to fall? Was I supposed to stop it? Warn him?

I would have looked like a real freak then. No I settled on the fact that maybe it was something I was to learn from. It was proof that what I experienced was real and it did happen. Someone was telling me that this new "gift/power" was very real and that I was expected to figure it out what it meant and how I was to use it.

Robbie was fine. He landed on his pride, which he was used to landing on. I on the other hand was quite shaken by the whole thing.

If anyone knew, imagine Jade West frightened by something. I had to get this all under control.

Cat came to me and gave me a hug. She had a way of doing that to me. Just when I think she is going to be a royal pain and ask me all kinds of embarrassing questions, all she does is give me a hug. What could I do? I needed the hug so I hugged her back. With that we both decided that we would wait and talk about this later alone.

Lunch was a little strained. We sat at our usual spot out on the patio called the Asphalt Café. The new girl joined us. André introduced her to everyone. Her name was Victoria Vega, but she called herself Tori.

I have never considered myself as gay, but I just couldn't take my eyes off this girl. She was more than beautiful she was overpowering. She was slight of frame and moved like a dancer. Her very long dark brown hair moved like water in the sunlight, but it was her eyes that haunted me. When I looked in her eyes there was a feeling of something pulling at me.

I have heard people say that when they met someone it was like they had known them their entire lives. With this girl it was not like that if was more of a feeling like I could know her a lifetime and never really know all of her.

Everyone ate their lunch and talked about the school and the students here. They talked about what Tori could expect and the pitfalls to watch out for. I kept quiet, but that was nothing new for me. I was kind of in my own head anyway.

Tori was telling a story about her old school and as she spoke she knocked her empty drink cup off the table. I bent down and picked it up. As I was coming back up it was like the entire world came to a stop and time was frozen.

I looked around and everyone was caught in mid-stride and with words half formed in their mouths. Looking up across the café I saw an older man with a rough short beard and a trench coat and hat. He did not seem to be frozen.

He looked right at me and said, "Protect the empty one! You must protect the empty one!"

His voice was one I had heard before. I had heard his voice and these same words in my dreams the last few nights. It was strange, because in my dreams I couldn't see his face only his silhouette, but his voice was clear. In my dreams he said something different. He told me to "protect the empty one chosen for the world."

As I set the drink cup back on the table suddenly the world snapped back into motion and the voices once again filled the café. I looked around and nothing looked changed except for the stranger was gone. I looked up and my eyes locked with Tori's. Neither of us said anything but we continued to stare at each other.

Why was she staring at me? There was no expression on her face that I could read. She just stared at me. Finally I broke the stare and looked down. Then I heard her voice join in the conversation with the others. I grabbed my garbage and got up heading for the trash bin. I had to get out of here.

**AN: Now I am finished two chapters and still don't really know where this story is taking me. I am enjoying the ride though. Let me know what you think. If you liked this story try some of my other stuff. No really please read my other pieces and let me know what you think. It means so much for a writer to know people are reading and thinking about their words. Thanks S.M.**


	3. Chapter 3:The Wrist Hickey Phenomenon

**AN: I do not own or operate the characters from Victorious. I just keep them alive. Someone else owns them and has already made a fortune from them. **

**I hope you like this.**

**Enjoy S.M.**

Chapter 3: The Wrist Hickey Phenomenon

I decided that I could no longer be around people. I had to go somewhere and think. I went to the experimental theatre that they called the "black box". It would be empty this time of the day.

I took a seat down front in the dark. I come here as often as I go to the janitor's room. I know that there isn't a class in here right after lunch so I have time myself to try and figure some things out.

Who was the guy in my dreams and why is he now in my reality? Was he a good person or evil? Maybe if I figure that out then I could figure out the rest.

I stared into the darkness. I let my eyes relax and not focus on anything. I was almost asleep when I felt him sit down next to me. At first we didn't talk we just stared into the blackness.

"Who the hell are you?" I asked with a rather sharp tone.

"I am Walsterick. I have been waiting for you Jade West." He said.

"Waiting for me? I have been right here. What do you mean waiting for me?"

"You do ask a lot of questions! We had to wait until you were old enough to do this job and your body ready for the mission."

"What mission?" I asked now turning to him.

"It is simple you must protect the Empty One."

"Yes you have said that, but what does it mean? Who is the Empty One?"

"You will know all in the time that you need to know it. You will find the Empty One or the one will find you."

"Who am I protecting this person from?"

"There is a dark force out in the world that wants this person dead. If this person dies the world will be thrown into chaos all governments and economies will come crashing down. Wars will be waged and a new order will form. You must never let this happen."

"This sounds all Matrix. Why do they want this empty headed person?"

"Empty One, you understand the term 'need to know'?"

"Yes I will find out what I need to know when I need to know it. So how am I to protect this person?"

"Anyway you can."

"Guns? Knives? Scissors?"

"Anyway you can!"

"Killing?"

"If need be. Did you keep up with the Tae Kwon do?"

"Ya. That's right you came to me in a dream and told me to take tae kwon do instead of all the therapy. I go once a week. It helps my moods."

"ONCE A WEEK!"

"Ya what is the biggie? That is the class the Y offeres."

"The Y? My god! You need much better training than that!"

"I check out some places and the Y was the cheapest."

"THE CHEAPEST! YOU ARE TO DEFEND THE WORLD AND YOU WENT WITH THE CHEAPEST?"

"Why are you yelling at me?" I said with tears in my eyes. I don't even know this guy and he shows up and starts yelling at me.

"You're right, I am sorry Jade, but you need some real training and in a hurry. Do you know the homeless shelter on Dundas and Glen Ross?"

"Ya? It is just down the street from a cool used book store."

"It is also across the street from a Tae Kwon Do school run by a very grumpy man named Carlos Ray. Give him this card and he will know what to do."

He handed me this business card and when I looked at it I thought it was blank until I turned it over. Printed on one side was a graphic. It was an eagle holding a sword. I looked at it questioningly, but I knew I would not get an answer from Wally.

"So Wally how much time do I have to get ready?"

"It is Walsterick and you should have been trained by now."

"Wally you need to settle down and maybe switch to a decaf. Trust me I know my coffee."

I turned and he was gone. For a moment I thought maybe my mind made him up so I put my hand on his chair and it was warm. I didn't create this in my mind. Wally was real. Somehow that didn't comfort me.

I turned the card over and over in my hand as I sat thinking about what had just happened. I wasn't sure that I had it in me. I could barely look after myself these days let alone someone else.

I went to my afternoon classes. The good thing was I only had one class with my friends and that was at the end of the day. By then I was able to get my act together and put on my "Jade Face" to keep them off my back.

I was not the first person to class, but I wasn't the last either. The last was Tori. I didn't want to stare at her, but there was something magnetic that made it so I couldn't take my eyes off of her as she swept into the room. She smiled at me and gave a slight wave and then sat with André.

I forced myself to look away from her, but my eyes just kept coming back to her. That was when Ms. Little stepped to the front of the room. She welcomed Tori and asked her a few questions about herself and then moved on with the class.

This was a children's theatre class. We learned the skills needed to write and perform for a younger audience. I took the class because I thought it would be an easy A, but I soon found out that writing for children and keeping a balance between not writing over their heads and not talking down to them is a real challenge.

She asked a few students to come to the front of the class and perform a fairy tale and find a new ending. Little chose André, Cat, Beck, Tori and a couple of other students. She looked right at me and skipped to others.

The performance was fun. They took the Three Billy Goats Gruff and had the goats knock down a damn and flood the troll out from under the bridge. I had to smile to myself as André rolled on the floor as the troll went down stream. Then it happened.

As they were leaving the small stage at the front of the classroom, Ms. Little thanked them and then she turned directly to me and said, "See how easy it is Jade. Tori didn't take the easy way out. She could play the middle goat without bullying the others to let her be the lead role."

I smiled a fake smile at her and decided I could choke her to death if I was forced to protect the Empty One from her. It was when Tori turned around and smiled at me that a kernel of hatred for her started to take hold in the pit of my stomach too.

I was starting to hate how people were fawning all over her. Who was this girl to come sweeping into MY school and start pushing me around. I had all the leads for the last two years and I planned on keeping them in the future.

When the bell rang I got my stuff and started to leave the class. That was when Ms. Little shouted out, "Remember students you have a script outline due in two days and Jade no movie plots this time. Tori you don't have to do this assignment, but if you wish you could do it with someone's help."

"Bitch!" I said under my breath and left the room.

I hurried to my locker and was going to escape this day and head home, but Cat caught up with me. "Hi Jadee".

"Don't call me that Cat." I said knowing that it wouldn't change anything we have been playing out this scene for years.

"Ya, ya Have you met Tori? She is very nice. She has a beautiful voice. She just blew Mr. Torrington away in voice class today. She did a great job in Ms. Little's Kiddy T class too. You could have some competition there Jadee."

"Ya if I don't kill her first." I was thinking to myself that maybe she was here to find the Empty One and kill them. Then she would be able to get rid of Tori. It was pretty drastic, but that is where my mind was at that time.

"I know you don't mean that Jade. So what was with you in inprov class today? Why did you hurt me? What scared you so much?" Cat asked staring at me.

I grabbed her wrist and dragged her into the janitor's room. I shut the door and she instinctively put up her hands to protect her face. I shook my head and she brought her hands down.

"I am not going to hurt you Cat." She looked relieved. "I don't know what happened. I took your wrist and when I locked eyes with you I could see images." I started slow not really knowing how I was going to explain this.

"My brother sometimes has visions when he smokes…"

"Cat stay focused on this situation. I could see your past and your present life. It was like I was watching TV. The scariest thing is I could see your future. I knew that Robbie was going to fall down the stairs today. It has something to do with all the dreams I have been having." I felt somewhat relieved having someone I could tell about this situation.

"Do you have a superpower Jade? You are like Wonder Woman." Cat was very excited.

"No I am not like Wonder Woman. She dressed like a slut and couldn't see the future. I guess I am more like …. I am like no one Cat! This is real and really scary." I tried to calm myself again.

"But it seems that you can control this because you didn't hurt my wrist now when you pulled me in here! That is good." Cat always tried to cheer people up. That is just who she was.

I grabbed her wrist and turned it over looking for a new burn, but there was nothing there and the burn from earlier seemed to be healing.

"See it is almost gone. For some reason it is healing faster than normal. Now it only looks like a wrist hickey." She said smiling.

It was true the mark was almost gone. This was a strange thing. I still didn't know how to make sense of all this in my mind.

"I was wondering if you would help me figure this out. Will you come over to my place tonight and let me practise on you? It might hurt you again, but I have no way of testing this on myself. Please Cat?"

"Can I bring my friend Sam?" Cat asked.

She probably wanted to have someone there to help her in case I went crazy and tried to kill her.

"Sure come about seven thirty." I said opening the door and letting her out.

I had a rough day and was exhausted. I went home and lay on my bed. I didn't intend on taking a nap. Originally I planned to make notes on what had happened and try to make more sense of it all. I was woke up by the door bell ringing and then someone yelling "JADE!"

Cat was at my door. That meant it was after seven. Where did the time go? I threw a few things in my closet and sort of cleaned my room a bit.

Cat and Sam poked their heads in the door to see if it was safe. I invited them in and they slowly came into my room. I don't know how much Cat had told Sam, but she must have told her something. They were both acting like they were entering with the trepidation that one would have in a cemetery on a full moon.

I tried to make them feel welcome and soon they calmed down and relaxed a little. I started at the beginning telling them all about the dreams and Wally. I then told them about today when I was able to 'read' Cat. Sam was a lot braver than Cat and offered herself up as a lab rat.

Sam took off her hoodie and sat down on my bed and said, "Okay girl do you thing!"

I moved over to sit next to her on the edge of my bed. I grabbed onto her forearm expecting the magic to start, but it didn't. I readjusted my hold and still nothing happened.

"Why isn't it working?" Cat asked.

"I don't know! Something is different." I said in frustration.

"Well take it slow and think about what happened differently today." Sam said with a very calm tone in her voice.

"I don't know. I was just staring into Cat's eyes and it all started." I said unsure.

"We will start with that then." I said.

I looked deeply into Sam's eyes and took a moment to breathe deeply. I then I reached out and lay my hand on her forearm. That was when it started. I felt dizzy and the room dimmed to the point when I could focus on was Sam's eyes. Then I was able to see her thoughts and her being.

I saw her past as her mother and father fought and she would cry in her bedroom. I watched her father leave her and her mother and her mother's slow collapse into the pit of alcoholism. I saw Sam make friends with a girl named Carly and a boy named Freddy. They were good friends and gave her the family that she so wanted and needed.

Then I saw Carly leave them and go to Japan. She found that she had to leave Seattle and Freddy. She would come to ruin if she stayed. I then saw her making friends with Cat and their friendship and something about a goat.

I then saw Sam carrying a baby standing next to a tall dark hair boy. He was smiling and it seemed that his mother was there fussing around with everyone and everything. One day she would be happy again.

I blinked and it was gone as fast as it came. I felt somewhat drained of energy and fell back on my bed. Cat came to me and supported my limb body. "What did you see?"

I started to feel my strength coming back and was able to speak once again. "I saw Sam's past and present and…."

"And my future?" Sam asked.

"Yes." I managed.

I looked to her arm where I touched her. There was a red mark, but nothing like the marks I left on Cat earlier. "How is your arm?"

"It burned like a sunburn but not what I would call real pain." Sam said, "Now what of my life did you see?"

"I saw your parents and your mother alone in Seattle. I saw you and Cat becoming friends and then I saw you with your husband and a baby." I said rather unsure what I should say.

"Who was the man I marry?" Sam asked.

"I don't know. I did not hear a name. I did see his mother fussing around and treating him like he was a five year old. Does that make any sense?" I asked.

"Hmmm yes it makes sense to me." Sam said with a smile on her face.

"Try me now!" Cat said holding out her arm.

"I don't want to hurt you again." I said, but she insisted.

"I am asking you to do it." Cat stated.

I looked her in the eye and touched her forearm. This time I concentrated on not causing her any pain. It felt different. I could still see her thoughts, but my hand did not burn her this time. I tried one more thing this time. I tried to communicate with her through my thoughts. I left her with a riddle to see if she could answer me later.

When I broke away from her I did not feel as dizzy. I looked to her skin and there was no mark where I touched her. Then I looked at her face. She smiled and said, "The answer to your question is a needle."

Sam looked at her strangely. "What are you talking about Cat?"

"Jade asked me a question. She asked what has one eye but cannot see. It is a needle." Cat said.

"Ah Cat, she didn't ask you a question." Sam said concerned for Cat.

"Yes she did ask me. She asked me in my head." Cat said with a grin. "Look no marks either and no pain. You are getting better at this Jade."

We spent the rest of the night watching TV and making fun of the horrible child actors on some sitcoms on the network called Jukebox. Then they decided that it was time to go home. I had to admit I was exhausted too and was ready for bed.

As I lay my head on the pillow I was faced with one question that kept ringing in my head. "Who was the Empty One?"

**AN: Let me know what you think. If you liked this story try some of my other stuff. No really please read my other pieces and let me know what you think. It means so much for a writer to know people are reading and thinking about their words. I live for your feedback. Well that and cheeseburgers. ****J****Thanks S.M.**


	4. Chapter 4: All Parts of the Whole

**AN: I do not own or operate the characters from Victorious. I just keep them alive. Someone else owns them and has already made a fortune from them. **

**I hope you like this.**

**Enjoy S.M.**

Chapter 4: All Parts of the Whole

It wasn't long and Cat had let the well 'cat out of the bag' so to speak. Everyone in our group knew about why I ran out of class. They treated me even colder than normal. I can't really blame them. My feelings about this entire mess was slowly turning to rage.

I had no way to control what was happening to my life. I was to protect someone that I didn't know and I didn't even get a say in the matter. Things were really tense at home and my classes were starting to slip. I was no longer the center of attention. That damn Vega girl had taken that away from me. I was feeling very alone and my thoughts were getting darker and darker.

The only relief I had was Tae Kwon Do. I went into the run down gym and asked for Carlo Ray. The guy went to the back and brought out a rough bearded guy that looked like he could be an action star in movies. He just had a way about him. He was soft spoken, but you got the feeling that he was a no nonsense kind of guy.

I showed him the card and told him Wally sent me.

He laughed and repeated "Wally!" and then said, "Your name?"

"Ah I am Jade" I said sticking out my hand.

He just stood there staring at me. Then the other guy whispered to me, "Bow idiot".

I bowed and Carlo returned the bow and then he took off to the back of the gym again. I followed at my own pace. By the time I got back to the mats he had been in the back and changed into a gi and taken off his cowboy boots.

"Agi go in the change room and change into the gi I have left for you and come out and get ready to learn." Carlos said.

I did as he said. I had some trouble with the belt, but he quickly took care of that. I told him that at the YWCA I had managed to get my yellow belt. He seemed to ignore that and continued to tie the white belt around my waist.

"Now Agi you will not learn how to stand you will learn how to stop falling. You will fall over and over again until you learn to stand. From now on you will call me Master Ray" he stated.

"Well I bet you are glad your last name isn't Bates!" I said smiling to myself.

Suddenly I found myself laying on my back looking up at the ceiling. I discovered that painted on the ceiling were the words, 'warriors get up again'. I slowly dragged myself to my feet unsure what hit me.

After two hours I left with bruises on top of bruises. This was not the way they taught Tae Kwon Do at the Y. Somehow I thought Master Ray was not trying to get me in shape. He had something else in mind. I hated him for the pain but respected him for not giving up on me.

The next day I could barely move when I got out of bed. I stood in the hot shower a long time letting the heat enter my bones. At that point I wasn't sure that I could survive the training. I will have to thank Master Ray for not leaving any marks where they couldn't be covered up by clothing. That would be very hard to explain at school.

I started to feel better about who I was and what I was tasked with. I felt stronger both physically and mentally. I was doing better in class and with others. I even started eating lunch with the others and taking part in conversation.

I even used my 'magic' to entertain them once in a while. Robbie always wanted to know how he was going to do on assignments. I always lied to him just because he is a dork and easy to mess with. I got him to study for four hours for a ten question quiz. Whoever gave me this power I am sure didn't give it to me to use as a sideshow act.

I was going every day to train at the gym and I was getting good. I could feel it. I started to wonder what level belt I was at and why Master Roy wasn't awarding me with them and of course as soon as it was out of my mouth I knew it was not what I should have said.

"Master Roy, what level belt am I and when will you give it to me?" I stammered.

"Belt?"

"Yes colored belts like yellow, orange …."

"You are concerned about colored belts? You are worried about what color belt you can wear? Why do you have a need to show off for your friends? You have been chosen to protect the Empty One. If you fail the world will end as we know it. Go to Wal-Mart and buy whatever color belt you want."

He was angry and disappointed in me. I could tell. As I read those words again on the ceiling I got back to my feet and apologised for letting my ego rule my focus. He accepted my apology and then I read the sign again.

I saw a poster at school for an upcoming play. I had decided that I was ready to try to get back into theatre again now that I was feeling better. I tried out for the lead part. I was sure that I was a shoe in for the part. The part was for a woman who was a black widow who was facing murder charges for her three former husbands.

Cat and I were sure that I was meant to play the part. It was like it was written for me. No one else in the school was more suited for the part of a dark scary woman who murdered her husbands. I even started to plan who I would play the part.

The next day you could have knocked me over with a feather when I read the names on the poster. I searched for my name and could not find it. I was not cast as the widow. That part was given to Tori Vega. I didn't even get the part of third policeman. My name was nowhere to be found.

I stormed into Sikowitz's classroom and demanded that he tell me why I didn't get the part of the widow. He told me that I didn't earn it. I have check out too long in class and he thought that my skills had suffered. He said Tori was better in the role. He told me that he wanted me to understudy her for the role.

An understudy learns the role and all the blocking just in case something happens to the lead and they are not able to play the part. If that happens the understudy goes on in the lead role until the main actor was able again to play the part. Usually first year students were the understudies and they rarely saw the stage.

I was angry. Cat tried to calm me down and it is a good thing that I didn't find Tori. I might have done something I would have been sorry for later or she would have been.

I went for a walk outside to try to cool down. I moved to a bench that was near the shade of the trees. I sat and watched a bird drink from a small puddle from last night's rain. I never even noticed when she approached. It was like she made no sound when she walked or I was just lost in thought.

Tori asked, "Do you mind if I sit down?"

I resisted jumping and looked up at her. "Yes, but it is a free country." I moved over to make a little more room and she sat down.

"You hate me don't you?" Tori asked point blank.

"You don't beat around the bush much do you?" I said looking away.

She sat down and watched the clouds in the sky. "You wanted the part in the play didn't you?"

"Yes I guess." I said trying not to give her too much power.

"You would have been far better for the role." She was playing it slowly too.

"I know. You are going to suck at it." I said leaning back.

"You are probably right, however you have more important things to do from what I hear."

"Oh what do you hear?" I asked.

"I hear that you are taking martial arts." She said not giving in.

"Ya I am and I'd watch my step. I am getting pretty good at it." I said.

"Well that is good. I want to be your friend Jade. I don't want you to hate me especially over something as stupid as a part in a play." Tori said.

"I have enough friends."

"I also hear that you can see things. Things others cannot see. Is that true?" She asked staring straight at me.

"You heard that did you?" I say sarcastically wondering why she would care.

"Yes I have heard this. I want you to read me Jade." She said turning to me.

"Maybe I don't want too. I am not a circus performer that puts on shows for a quarter." I barked.

"I am not looking for a performance. I am looking for a reading." She was just as stern as I was.

She reached out to me and held her hand out to me. I just stared at her for a moment and then reached out for her hand. I grabbed her small hand and thought I might want to inflict some pain this time. I adjusted myself on the bench and faced Tori. That feeling soon went away and seemed the most unthinkable thing as soon as I took her hand.

I took a deep breath and stared into her eyes. She had beautiful brown eyes, but that was not what I was looking for. I looked past those eyes and looked for her past.

I was not able to see her past. I adjusted my grip on her hand and tried again. I still could not see her past. It was like she had nothing there. I could see her present which was her last month here at Hollywood Arts. Even that was like watching it through a TV and not the eyes of someone who lived the experiences.

I looked to see her future and still could see nothing. I was looking into a black hole. There was nothing there. I tried again and still I saw nothing. I was getting frustrated.

"What do you see Jade?" Tori asked.

"I don't see anything. Somehow you are blocking me. Now stop it!" I shouted.

"I am not blocking anything Jade. What do you see?!" Tori demanded.

"I see nothing. All I see is black. It is em…..empty. No ….no not possible, not you." I had a sick feeling in my stomach. This is exactly how fate screwed with my life. The girl I hated the most is the Empty One.

"Yes Jade I am the Empty One that you are looking for. I need your protection. There are those out there that want me dead."

"No no," I shook head rubbing my face. "So what makes you empty? Why don't you have a past and a future?"

"I was born without a being or a soul. I can't explain it. Walsterick tried to explain it to me, but I don't understand."

"Wally knew it was you and he didn't tell me. That bastard I will kill him when I see him."

"Not really worth it. He has been dead for two thousand years. He has been through this at least ten times. It seems that there has always been a group of people called the Streuds Cor . They thrive on Chaos. Their plan is to throw the world into a tailspin and allow the wars to destroy society and then they will step in and take over."

"So if the Streuds Cor ?"

"Yes Streuds Cor ."

"So if the Streuds Cor has always been around why now? Why you? Why me?" I ask.

"It seems that every time they gain strength and are near taking over a child is born. That child is born void of a soul. They are born empty. The Streuds Cor get their strength by draining souls from humans. The Empty One locates their power storage and destroys it they are forced to start again and the world is safe for another couple of hundred years."

"So if you are so powerful then why do you need me? Every EO has a Guardian to make sure they make it to the core safely. That is where you come in. You are my Guardian. The Watchers rely on the Guardian to keep the EO alive. If you fail, I fail and the world will fall into darkness." Tori said with her head down now.

It was then that I noticed that I was still holding her hand. Normally I would have dropped her hand as a sort of defense mechanism, but I didn't want to let her go. My hand was warm in fact my entire being felt warm and content. It was at that moment that I realized that I did not hate this girl in fact I was in love with this girl.

I had never thought of loving a girl before. In truth I avoided the normal accepted contact that most girls have with each other. I would cringe when I saw girls with their arms around each other or hugging. I would fall back when I saw two girls take each other's hands. No way would I even entertain the idea, but now I could not think of being apart from this girl.

It was like Tori could read my mind. She readjusted her hand and intertwined her fingers with mine. "I know you are confused. It is love that you feel. The deepest of love. There is a reason you have never loved until now. We are one being. I have no soul without you and you have no kindness, gentleness or love without me. That is the way it is and the way it has always been."

There I was staring deeply into this beautiful girl's eyes. I could not control myself I leaned in and we kissed. It was a long deep kiss held all the passion of every kiss for the last hundred years. It was a kiss that cleansed me. That made me feel strong the inner strength that Master Ray saw in me was not becoming apparent to me. I felt that with the love of this girl I could move mountains.

When I pulled away Tori said, "I have loved you my entire life and will love you until the end of it."

"And I you." I said without even thinking about what I was saying.

We sat for a while longer and then decided that we should go back to the school. I took her hand and we walked back down the street to the campus of Hollywood Arts. I held the door open for her to enter and with that all the eyes of the hall were on the two of us. I took Tori's hand and walked to her locker. There she got her books and was about to go to her last class of the day.

I was about to go to my own class when I heard a voice say far too loudly, "I knew that the new girl was a dyke. I asked her out and she would have nothing to do with me. Now I know why. She is a Lez."

I turned to face the voice. A very large senior was squared off in the hall laughing at us. I was about to ignore it when he made his way over and grabbed Tori's ass. "I want a handful of that though. That is an amazing ass Lez or not."

I acted on instinct not on conscious thought. He never had time to pull his hand back. I broke his arm in two places with one blow. I then grabbed this beast who would dare lay a hand on the EO. My other. I lifted him from the ground and threw him across the hall. He crashed through a classroom door and with that my days of school were done.

I was now doing my job. I was the Guardian and she would be safe. I would see to it or die trying.

**AN: Let me know what you think. I have included all kinds of fun things in this chapter. With a little research you find the smile behind Carlo Ray, Agi and the Streuds Cor. These are just little gifts. If you liked this story try some of my other stuff. No really please read my other pieces and let me know what you think. It means so much for a writer to know people are reading and thinking about their words. I live for your feedback. Thanks S.M.**


	5. Chapter 5: The Martyr in My Bed

**AN: I do not own or operate the characters from Victorious. I just keep them alive. Someone else owns them and has already made a fortune from them. **

**I hope you like this.**

**Enjoy S.M.**

Chapter 5: The Martyr in My Bed

Well I was right. I was suspended for two weeks from school for violence. If they only knew what was coming down the pipe they would call this a dance class.

Word went through the school as fast as fire. Now everyone that was undecided if they were afraid of me had now made up their minds. I was labeled a danger to all.

I took offense to that. I was not a danger to everyone. There is no way I would ever hurt Tori. I am not even sure if I have the ability to hurt her. She is far more powerful than she or Wally let on. I felt it when I held her hand.

Tori and I were inseparable after the incident at the school. I took this as the first attack, even though I knew that it really wasn't. When she was in school I sat in the parking lot. I had gone to Radio Shack and picked up a few things that allowed me to give her a panic button that triggered my phone.

While I was waiting for her I read emagazines and ebooks on martial arts using my PearPad. A person once told me that you can't learn something by reading about it. I beg to differ. I have learned a lot from reading. When I knew no one was watching I would slip out of my car and practise.

One day I decided to work on arming myself. I stopped and picked up some items at a camping store. I slowly sharpened four throwing knives that I purchased while I read about using them from my PearPad. That afternoon I spent time throwing them at a wooden palate that was in the garbage. I was doing not so horrible.

When I was tired of throwing knives I had a nap in the driver seat of my car. Thank God it was Friday this was already boring.

I nearly jumped out of my hide when the police officer tapped on my window.

"Good afternoon officer." I said as nonchalantly as I could while making sure I didn't have drool on my chin.

"Why are you out here in the parking lot during class time?" she said in a very stern voice.

"Oh ah… I am done my classes early and have this period off. I was a bit tired and thought I would have a nap in my car in the sun. It may be cool outside, but out of the wind with the sun shining on you like this it feels great." I said prattling on hoping she would think me an airheaded girl and leave me alone.

"Like I said. Why here in the parking lot? Why not at home if you don't have any more classes?" she was not going away as easy as I had hoped.

"Well I have to give my girlfriend a ride home and she has a class right now. See she lives all the way over on West Chester and I live in South Ridge. If I were to go home and then come back and get her I would be on the road for like an hour and a half, but this way I am only on the road for maybe half that time. That is unless she wants to stop for coffee, because she only likes the dark roast at Phil's Coffee Jungle and that is like twenty-five minutes north of here. It could really add up if I had gone home and waited for her." I smiled and looked back at the police officer just like Cat does when she thinks that her logic is making total sense.

I was waiting to see if she was buying my story when the passenger door opened and Tori slid into the car. "Is everything alright Hon?"

"Yes I was just tell the officer that if I were to go home and wait for you…" I was interrupted.

"Okay, Okay just don't …. just go and the dark roast at the Jave Hut is so much better than at Coffee Jungle." She shook her head and walked back to her car.

I leaned over and kissed Tori. "Thank you Tori you saved me."

"She didn't look like she was going to harm you. Do you think that she is after me?" Tori asked with her cute innocence.

"No but she was harshing me over being in the parking lot." I said watching the police car pull out.

"What have you been doing all day?" Tori asked.

"I have been practicing throwing knives." I said as I drove off.

"Throwing knives. Are you any good?" Tori questioned.

"Well I didn't hit myself." I tried to joke.

"You will have to show me this new talent." Tori said as she placed her hand on my thigh.

I can't explain the feeling, but normally when someone touches you in a loving way you feel the heat of their hand and a soft gentle touch, but with Tori it was very different.

Her touch wasn't warm, it was hot almost to the point of uncomfortable. Then there was the feeling of energy being traded back and forth between her body and mine. I swear that she was absorbing me or who I am.

That was when I decided that it was time that Tori came to me fulltime. How could I protect her if she wasn't in my sight every hour of the day? What if she was attacked while I was sleeping and she was at her house? I would fail. That was that, she was going to have to come and live with me.

"I have decided that you have to come and live with me at my house." I said matter a factly.

"But what will your family say?"

"I wouldn't worry about them. I am alone all the time anyway. My mom ran off years ago and my father is off playing with his new trophy wife all the time. I am just the one he leaves cash for every month and hopes I don't burn the house down. He won't be home for at least another month." I said telling her the ugly truth that was my life.

"I didn't know that Jade. I am sorry." Tori said.

"Why I am not. It is what it is." I said.

"Well what about my family?" She asked.

"They are not really your family. You belong to the world. They are just the people who raised you." I said trying to make it easier.

"Jade they are my family. They gave birth to me and raised me and most of all loved me. What do we tell them?" She was now almost in tears.

I thought for a couple of blocks and finally apologised. I was wrong to say what I did, but I wanted her safe. Tori accepted my apology and asked again what we could tell her family.

"What if we tell them the truth?" I asked.

"Yes I am sure they are going to believe that I need to stay with you because we have been fated to play important roles in some archaic battle of good and evil and I am the chosen one." She scoffed.

"No we tell them that my father has gone away and he wants someone responsible to be at the house with me because he doesn't trust me. You are the most responsible person that I know so I asked you to stay." I was proud of my scheme.

Strangely enough Tori's parents were okay with her coming to live at my house for a while. I guess I read them right. They did see their daughter as a very responsible person and me as someone who needed a babysitter. I am okay with that. The ends justify the means.

When we got to my house I took her hand and her suitcase and led her to my bedroom. She was shocked that my bedroom was not as scary as she thought it would be. My room was once all pink and ruffles. Then as I grew up and changed it started darkening and now it had a king size bed with black sheets and a comforter.

Tori spent an extended amount of time staring at my real human skull. It sat on my shelf. It was a gift from my dad for my last birthday. I wanted it more than anything else and wouldn't hear of having anything else. My father had to drive me all the way to Berkley to a place called The Bone Room. It cost about two thousand dollars, but it was worth it.

I call him Alfred after my favourite director Alfred Hitchcock. I love the movie Psycho and Rear Window. I have seen them almost as many times as I have seen the movie The Scissoring. I could tell that Tori was a little creeped out by Alfred.

I tried to make her feel better by telling her that it was a plastic skull, but very breakable. I figured that way she wouldn't touch it and then she wouldn't be able to do her hocus pocus on it and know by holding it.

I distracted her by offering her something to eat. She was hungry so I went to the kitchen and found us some food to eat. It wasn't much, but it was quick and easy. I made tacos out of some left overs we had. So we had beef and rice and cheese tacos.

When we were finished eating and all the dishes were in the dishwasher we decided to watch TV in my room. We watched some dumb shows about spoiled kids in pageants and then when I caught Tori yawning I told her it was time for bed.

She had a startled look on her face like an animal caught in headlights. I calmed her by telling her that even though we would share a bed all I was looking for was sleep.

I showed her to the bathroom that was attached to my bedroom. She took her clothes and a bag that looked like a small gym bag and headed for the bathroom.

"What is in the bag?" I asked.

"This is my make-up, hair brushes, shampoo and stuff." Tori smiled. "Do you think I wake up looking like this?"

"I will tell you in the morning." I shot her a smirk.

With that she closed the door and disappeared. I grabbed a tank top and shorts that were laying on the floor by my closet. I took off my jeans and t-shirt and tossed them aside. I then slipped off my black lace bra and threw it aside. When Tori came out I was sitting on the bed in my tank and shorts waiting for my turn in the bathroom.

By the time I was finished and had returned to my bedroom Tori was already under the covers. She was pretending to be sleeping with the bedside lamp on. I moved slowly to the bed and then jumped on her. We giggled like we were little girls again. It was fun and really broke the tension of two people sharing a bed for the first time.

I climbed under the covers and pulled her to me. I held her close and kissed her. She started to roll on top of me when I stopped her.

"If you get on top of me I can't promise that I won't take things further than I promised, so off you get Baby Girl." I was honest with Tori.

Tori snuggled into me and we kissed one more time and then I reached over and turned off the lamp. Just before we were asleep, Tori asked if she could see me throw my knives in the morning. I hope I don't embarrass myself.

When I woke up in the morning I found myself tangled in blankets and Tori. I have never been so comfortable and happy waking up. She was not awake yet so I just watched her. She was indeed the most beautiful girl I had ever seen. I never thought of myself as gay before, but looking at Tori I could think of no one else I would ever want to share my bed and my life with. She caught me smiling at her.

"What are you smiling about?" Tori croaked with her morning voice.

"I am looking at the most beautiful girl in the world." I stated.

She covered her head with the blankets and shouted, "NO! I am so ugly in the morning!"

"I wish I was as ugly as you in the morning." I said.

"See even you think that I am ugly!" Tori trapped me.

"You are so frustrating sometimes."

"I have to pee." Tori shared.

"Well don't stay here. I am not into that kind of kink." I said flipping the covers back and letting the cool air hit her.

She jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom. I had a wonderful view of her running in a t-shirt and her hot little underwear clad bottom hurrying to the toilet. Once again I had to smile. How did I end up with this beauty?

With a tiny tight little butt like that I just wanted to grab it with both hands and squeeze or maybe even bite it a little in a loving sort of way.

After we got showered separately, which was a huge challenge to my resistance, we got dressed and went to the backyard by the pool. It was November so we were not going out to swim. We were going out so that Tori can see my knife throwing skills.

I set a cardboard box up and stepped back about thirty feet. I turned and threw my first knife and it landed in front of the box on the cement. The next stuck in the fence about two feet off the ground. The third knife ended up in the pool. I had one left. I felt Tori's light touch of her hand on my shoulder and for some strange reason I closed my eyes and pictured the knife sticking in the box. Then I opened my eyes and threw the knife. The knife flew like a dart and went right through the center of the box. It was a kill shot.

Tori threw her arms around my neck and kissed me as she jumped up and down. I felt the failure of the first three, but she only saw the final knife. It was then that I realized that when I was envisioning throwing the knife into the box it was Tori's voice I could hear saying, "You can do it. Right to the box." Was she in my thoughts?

"I think I might need some other choices if things get rough." I said.

"You will do just fine. You are my hero and protector. What else could a girl ask for?" Tori said before she kissed me again.

A little later we took my car to go to the mall for a while to do some shopping. I noticed the woman while we were getting a juice at the food fair. She wasn't acting like a normal person who was trying to decide on where to eat. She kept glancing back at Tori. She was good, but I was better at watching people. I have been doing it all my life. I have spent a lot of hours watching people and writing their stories in my head.

I ushered Tori to an exit without her knowing what was going on. We quickly walked to my car as I told her that I forgot that I was to meet with Cat at her house and I was late. Tori was talking the entire way to the car telling me how I needed to be more responsible and all. I wasn't listening. I was looking over my shoulder at the woman. She was now following us without any pretense of blending in.

I got Tori to the car and opened her door like I was being a romantic girlfriend, but I was now answering my destiny. I was now being The Guardian.

Once she was in the car I pressed the button on the keychain and she was locked in the car. She protested for a second until she realized that the look on my face had changed to one of calm fierceness. She then ducked down below the dash.

I turned to face my opponent. She was now about twenty feet away and had taken off her long coat. She was dressed head to foot in black combat clothes and was ready for a fight.

"Streuds Cor I suppose!" I said with a calm I had gone to that place that Master Ray had taught me about. I was ready for battle. I hope she was.

"Guardian! Why don't you just give her to me and you go on your way?" She said with an evil grin.

She makes the first move. She rushes me and I am ready. In my combat stance that is now automatic I sidestep her charge and add to her momentum by pushing on her back. She ends up on the pavement in the parking lot. I quickly strike by stomping on her calf muscle. She will get up, but with a major Charlie horse in her lower leg. Then I hear Master Ray's voice in my head. "You do not have the luxury of winning a battle by disabling your opponent. This is not a competition. You will have to kill them."

The Cor jumped up and could not put her full weight on her leg as I had planned. She punched me in the chest and if I had not turned my shoulders I would have had the wind knocked out of me. I knew that I would still have a major bruise on my chest. That was when I thought that if I lived on this I would have to look into body armor.

I grabbed her forearm and wrenched it behind her back and slammed her into the side of a large truck that was parked a few feet away. I felt at least one of her ribs crack under my weight. I would make note of this and use it against her. I then punched her in the kidneys and swept her legs out from behind her.

She came back at me with a knife. I then pulled one of my knives. We locked in a battle of strength. She would swipe at me and I at her. Soon we were rolling on the ground.

She managed to slice my upper left arm. I felt the sting of the blade. One thing about a sharp blade. It slices through quickly and stings more than tears at the flesh. I couldn't think about that now. I had to disarm her.

The next time she struck out at me I got a hold of her arm and bent it back against the elbow and broke her right arm. Now she was down to three libs to use as weapons. I followed up by solidly punching her in the ribs where I knew they were broken. I felt them give and she coughed. She now had a punctured lung. I was ahead on points now.

She fell to the ground holding her side. She could no longer draw a breath without shooting pain. I gave her a chance to get back to her feet. At this point I still believed in some sort of honor code and thought it poor form to not give your opponent a fighting chance. I would soon learn to give no quarter to an enemy.

The Cor staggered to her feet and took a weak swing at me and I got behind her and placed my arm at her throat and my palm on the left side of her head. With a sharp tug I pulled her head to the right and broke her neck. She slumped dead in my arms and I let her fal to the ground.

I had killed a person. I had taken away someone's life. Even though I knew all the arguments of why I had to do it, it still sickened me. I felt it rising in my stomach and I turned away and wretched my stomach contents on the pavement.

I looked around to see if anyone had seen what had happened and saw no one. I went to my car and got in and drove off with aggression and speed. I didn't know where I was going I was just driving.

Tori was a very clever intuitive girl and knew that this was not the time to ask a lot of meaningless questions. She stayed quiet while I drove through the streets of L.A.

Soon I calmed down and drove us home. I stopped the car and got out. She was going to get out of her side and I ran around to her side. I then looked around to see if it was safe first. I now knew my duties and took it far more serious.

When I knew she was safe, I opened the door and helped her out. She quickly ran to the door of the house, without my telling her to run. She too understood that things had changed.

When we were inside the house and the doors were locked, that is when I was able to step away and weigh everything that had happened. It was then that I looked at my bleeding arm. Now it hurt like hell.

Tori came to me and helped me remove my jacket and shirt. She held a clean cloth to the wound, but could not stop the bleeding. She told me that I was going to need stitches. How could I protect her and go to a hospital.

That was when the doorbell rang. Tori was going to go to the door, but I told her to hide. She hid in the bathroom while I went to the door. When I looked out the small window in the door I saw it was Wally. I turned the lock and let him in.

"You made contact this morning." It was not a question. It was a statement. "They were testing you. That is what we call a soft probe. The next attack won't be so soft. I see you are injured."

"Ya she got a piece of me. It looks like I am going to need stitches. I did win and protected the target." I managed through the pain.

"You won this round, but don't get so smug. She was new and poorly trained. You will not be so lucky next time. You will not need stitches I can take care of that. You need to prepare for war. That is what this is. A few throwing knives are not going to get this done. You need to arm yourself. Now where is she?" Wally asked.

"Tori! You can come out Baby Girl. It is safe." I shouted.

When Tori came around the corner she looked like a small child who thought she was going to be punished. He smiled at her and she calmed down and entered the room fully.

"Tori this is Wally. Wally this is Tori." I said.

He stuck out his hand and said, "It is Walsterick!"

"Mr. Walster… Walst…" she struggled.

"Wally he said smiling."

"Wally is that what my life is always going to be like? They will hunt me until they kill me?" Tori was in tears looking at my arm.

"Ah … well it might… no once you find and reach the pillar then you will ascend and the evil in the world will be vanquished." He said trying to calm The Empty One.

When she finally started to calm down he said, "Now your Guardian needs you. She did her part today and now you must do your part. You are not a victim in these events. You are a part of them and you have responsibilities too."

"What can I do? She needs stitches." Tori managed.

"It is time for you to learn about and use your abilities. You have what is called the Gossamer Touch. It is the power to heal injuries. You will be able to heal your Guardian, but it will take energy from you. It will weaken you." Wally said.

"How do I do this?" Tori asked.

He had me lay down on the floor and Tori knee next to me. He told her to hold her hands together and clear her mind. She closed her eyes and did as he said. He told her she would feel a great amount of heat in her palms. Suddenly her hands became unbearably hot. She could no longer hold them together.

When she pulled them apart there was a dull glowing white light coming from them. He instructed her to place them over my wound. When she did it was like the softest fur that one could touch, even though she was not making any contact with me.

I soon felt the warmth enter my body and the pain slowly subsiding. I closed my eyes and let my mind float on the feeling. I could feel Tori flowing into my arm. It is very hard to explain the feeling, but it was better than anything I have ever felt. Then she collapsed on top of me. She was out cold.

**AN: Let me know what you think. Did you find out who Carlos Ray is? (Chuck Norris) and Agi (Korean for baby) and the Streuds Cor (well I will leave that little scramble for a while) ****J****. If you liked this story try some of my other stuff. No really please read my other pieces and let me know what you think. It means so much for a writer to know people are reading and thinking about their words. I live for your feedback. Praise is one thing, but meaningful reviews with your thoughts are what writers really want. I will be taking part in the Victorious writing prompt challenge as well. Thanks S.M.**


	6. Chapter 6:Coffee and Bullets

**AN: I do not own or operate the characters from Victorious. I just keep them alive. Someone else owns them and has already made a fortune from them. **

**Thank you for being patient as I took time out to write for the 7DOVPs. It gave me some time to figure out some things for this story. I hope you like this.**

**Enjoy S.M.**

Chapter 6: Coffee and Bullets

The next morning I was still with Tori and Wally was gone. At some point someone must have moved me to the couch and covered me with a blanket.

I moved my arm. There was no pain. I stretched it and moved it around. It was as good as new. The Gossamer Touch worked. I was healed. In fact I felt recharged and ready to take on the day. I had not even had a coffee yet and I felt like a bulldozer.

I looked around to find Tori. She was nowhere to be seen. I jumped up. Where was she? Was she in danger? Here I was sleeping and not doing my job. I had to find her.

"Tori? Tori?" I yelled through the house.

"Down here Jade!" she shouted back from the kitchen.

I found her in the kitchen making waffles. The wonderful smells filled my nose. I could smell waffles, coffee and something else. What was it?

"What did you make?" I asked.

"I made you waffles and coffee!" She smiled very proud of herself.

"What else? I smell something else." I questioned.

"Well I making some tea. It is to help with growth and energy."

"I hate to tell you this, but if you drink that your breath will smell like ass" I said.

"Oh, it isn't for me! This is for the plants. They have been looking pretty bad lately. I wouldn't drink this." Tori laughed. "So what are your plans for today?"

"I have to look into some more protection. I need to go see a guy I know downtown." I said trying to be evasive.

"I am getting worried." Tori finally said.

I went over and took her hand. "Look you let me worry. I will take care of you. I will die for you!"

"I don't want you to die for me. I want you to live for me… with me." She said with tears in her eyes.

I held her until she stopped crying. Then I sat her down and made her share my breakfast with me. I drank my second cup of coffee and made a phone call to the gym.

I wasn't looking for Carlos. No I was looking for Ricky, his employee. Ricky was a guy who could be useful in certain situations and this was one of them.

A number of times he hit on me until I told him that I was not into guys like him, or even guys at this point. He did go on and on about his life and what his friends were into. Once he told me that if ever I needed something he knew someone who could help.

I made sure that Tori was secure in the house and told her to wait for me and don't let anyone in. I had Andre come and stay with her to make sure she didn't do anything risky. She has a tendency to do things without thinking about how they might put her in harm's way. She was going around opening all the curtains before I left. She said she wanted to let the sun in. I told her that a bullet might just get in too and she quickly closed the curtains.

I met with Ricky down by the gym. He took me to see a guy. When we walked up to where there was a group of guys hanging out on a run-down porch in front of an old house.

We didn't walk up on the porch. We stood on the ground respecting his home and his space.

"Hey Kung Fu who is the bitch?" A tall thin black guy said who was leaning against the post holding the roof up.

"Ah this is Jade. She wants to do business with Chilli." Ricky said with a noticeable waver in his voice. I guessed that he really didn't know these guys as good as he claimed. Ricky was weak it was time for me to step up.

"I really don't have time to stand around here jerkin' off some low level stooge. Am I going to get to talk to Chilli or not?" I said never taking my eyes off of the guy leaning on the pole.

This guy was not happy. His friends were laughing at him and a woman just put him in his place. He slowly stepped down to where I was standing. I didn't back up and I didn't back down.

I let him step up so that he was inches away staring down at me. I held the stare right back. He blinked first, "I could kill you right here and no one in this neighborhood would tell a cop anything when or if your body is found." They he laughed while taking a quick glance at his buddies on the porch who now were standing and watching.

"How you gonna do that hero?" I asked not taking my eyes off him.

"With this!" He reached for a gun in his waistband that wasn't there. "What the fu…."

"Looking for this!" I said holding the short barrel under his chin. "Now you tell one of your girlfriends there to go get Chilli or I will give this back to you one bullet at a time."

He stared at me with hate in his eyes. I knew he wanted to kill me, but I didn't care. After what happened with the woman in the parking lot I could care less what this punk wanted to do. "Are you deaf as well as stupid?"

"Zip go tell Chilli this bitch wants to do business." My new friend 'Worm', according to what his friends called him, shouted to one of them.

We stood there for a while and then the screen door opened with a screech once again. Zip came out leading a fat bald Hispanic guy in jeans and white 'wife beater' shirt. He had a huge gold chain around his neck with a pair of gold brass knuckles hanging from it. This guy was the real deal.

"So who is the woman that got the best of Worm?" Chilli said without even looking my way.

I lowered the gun and climbed the stairs to the porch. He sat down in a worn brown vinyl recliner that had seen better days. Then he motioned to wooden kitchen chair across from him. I turned it so I could keep an eye on Worm and sat down.

Chilli noted what I did and smiled and nodded to me. I was starting to impress him. I then put the safety back on the pistol and handed it to him grip first as a show of respect.

He took the gun and unloaded it and then tossed it at Worm who caught in and put it back where I got it from. I had gained some respect and I everyone there knew it.

"So Jaaaaade, what is it that you shopping for? Rock? Weed? Brown? No, no you aren't here for junk you are looking for a gat! Nice. Very nice. What does a nice white girl like you need a gun for? You gonna scare the cheerleaders at your school?" Chilli laughed.

"No I am going to kill people." I answered staring him right in the face.

"Oh you are a killer are you?" Chilli was still grinning at me.

"Do you read the papers? She that white bitch they found dead by that school? My work!" I said with a stone face.

"Who you gonna kill girl?" Chilli asked.

"Everyone who gets in my way!" I answered.

"I think I might have what you need. Zig go bring me those new toys I got." He watches as Zig jumped up and ran into the house. He came back with a cardboard box and handed it to Chilli.

I watched as he reached in the box. I had to be ready for anything. This could all go bad at any time. He could pull out a gun and kill me right now. I was risking it all and I knew it, but there was no other way to get the gun I wanted.

"This is what you need. A .25 cal. Auto nice and light, small and easy for you to handle."

"No too small. I want something that is not only going to stop the bad guys but make sure they never get up again. You got something that will do that?" I asked.

"You are one nasty bitch aren't you? I like you! Ya I got it right here." Chilli reached into the box and pulled out a much bigger gun. "This is a Glock .40cal auto. This is a man stopper."

"I wanted that one Chilli." Zig spoke up.

"Ya you want it. You want it for free. I got a paying customer here shit for brains." Chilli put Zig in his place. "If you want this my dark angel it will come at two large."

"I will give you the eighteen and you throw in the .25 as a back-up." I might have been pushing my luck, but I had to continue to show him tough or he wouldn't respect me.

"You make me laugh Jaaaaaade. Two G's and I throw in the .25."

"Sounds good. Deal." I said. I reached into my pocket and pulled out a stack of bills. I pulled off the two thousand that he wanted for these guns. I knew they were well over priced, but I needed a gun now and didn't need the hassle of government paperwork.

Chilli watched me shove the rest of my money in my pocket. "Is there anything else you need girl?"

"Ya can you get me body armor?" I asked point blank.

"I don't have any right here, but I can make some calls."

"Do it!" I said keep solid.

Chilli nodded to a different guy that was sitting on a wooden box smoking a joint. He pulled out a phone and called someone. Then he said, "Skate has a vest that would fit her. He wants a fish for it. He is on his way."

I pulled out my cash and just stared at it, not really knowing how much I had to pay.

Chilli seemed to take a liking to me. It must have been my bad ass take no crap attitude. "He wants five hundred."

I pulled off the bills and an extra hundred. "Here and a finder fee for you."

Chilli took the money and put the extra hundred in his pocket. He smiled for the first time since she arrived. He lit a cigarette and sat back in the chair.

It didn't take long before a car with a very loud stereo came thundering up and parked in front of the house. Two guys climbed out of the car and walked towards the house.

"Hey Chilli you wanted a small vest?" One of the guys asked as he threw the vest to Worm. Worm handed me the vest. I checked it over. It seemed legit so I nodded to Chilli.

"Ya it is for the girl. What you laughing for? Do you see me laughing?" Chilli said to the two men. "She is a friend of mine and a killer. Maybe I let her take target practise on you."

The guy's smile faded quickly. "I never meant anything by it Chill." Chilli handed him his five hundred dollars.

"Well I gotta go. I have people to hurt." I said with a grin on my face. Chilli laughed and told me to come back anytime and he would be watching the papers for my work.

I climbed down the stairs where I met Worm. He was still giving me a death stare. I handed him a hundred dollar bill and said, "No hard feelings?"

He took the money and it seemed that all was fine as I made my way back to the gym where my car was parked. I handed another hundred to Ricky and drove off. I had to get back to Tori.

I spent a lot of cash today, but if the story was true there wouldn't be much of a world to spend it in if Tori were to get killed, besides my father would never miss the advance I took on his credit card. I will tell him it was for car repairs. He is always saying that I am irresponsible with my car anyway so why not use it to my advantage.

I made one more stop before I went home. I stopped at a gun store and bought a couple of holsters for my new weapons and a few extra clips. I also picked up a bowie knife in a black leather sheath. I also picked up several boxes of rounds for both guns. None of these items needed any government tracked licenses or waiting periods. Besides this was not the top of the mark this shop was more interested in the kind of government papers that have pictures of dead presidents on them.

When I got to the house I opened the door with my key. I found Andre and Tori on the couch playing a video game. They were having a beer and Tori seemed to be a little more loose than usual.

Tori came running over to me and threw her arms around me and hugged me. She then backed up and slapped my chest with the flat of her hand. "What are you wearing?"

"Body armor. Why are you drinking?"

"Andre brought beer and I didn't know, but I like the taste of beer." Tori said with a bit of a slur.

"Andre what the hell? Did I ask you to come over and feed her beer? No I didn't. She has never had alcohol before." I shouted at Andre

"I didn't know. Why is it such a big deal?" Andre asked.

"She just can't be drunk. Tori has important things to do and she needs all of her senses. There are people after us and she needs to be ready to react at any time." I stated.

"Ok I am not leaving until you tell me what is going on here Jade." Andre said.

I knew what would happen if I told Andre, so I told him everything. He got up off the couch and laughed.

"If you are not going to tell me what it is going on, then I am leaving." Andre made his way to the door.

"I am telling you the truth." I smiled. It didn't stop him he just kept on going. We waved goodbye and I thanked him for helping me out with Tori.

"Why did you tell him the truth?" Tori asked annoyed.

"He didn't believe me. The truth is not believable. What better cover is there than a truth that is too strange to believe?" I said smiling at Tori.

I took Tori in my arms and kissed her and she pushed me back. "What is this?" She said pointing to my new gun slung under my arm in my new holster.

"Babygirl that is what is going to stand between you and the bad guys. I have to do whatever it takes to keep you safe. That is my job. I know you don't like it, but I will kill to keep you safe." I firmly told Tori.

"It is not the killing it is you being killed that scares me." Tori said burying her face in my chest. I could feel her tears starting to soak through my t-shirt.

"I will be fine Tori. That is why I was chosen." I tried.

Now where do we begin looking for this power source?

We mused for a while about where the source might be. "Did Wally give you any kind of hint as to where this source might be?"

"No he doesn't know. He said that I know. How would I know? I don't know." Tori was feeling the pressure.

"Maybe we need to take a nap." I said trying to calm her down.

"I am so tired. I didn't get much rest even though I slept last night. I close my eyes and the dreams start. I need to rest. Should I take something? Do you have anything to help me rest?" Tori said.

"Well I probably have something around here. I can't make nightmares go away. I can only protect you from evil while you are awake, but I will watch over you and be there to wake you." I said.

"That is okay. There is an old man in white that protects me in my dreams." Tori said.

"What does he do to protect you?" I asked.

"He stands between me and the bad guys and holds out his arms."

"Does he say anything?"

"Yes he said something last night for the first time. He said, "Go to the stars!"

"Go to the stars? What does that mean?" I asked.

"I don't know. He just looks me in the eyes and says, Go to the stars."

"This is L.A. there are stars everywhere!" I said, "Where are we going to start looking for the stars?"

**AN: Let me know what you think. Sorry that this chapter didn't include a lot about Tori, but I had to arm Jade and she just couldn't go to the local gun store and pick out a model she liked. I hope I did it the justice it deserved. I have been criticized for my use of too much detail. I don't apologies for my writing style. I tend to write as if it is a novel not a short story. The devil is always in the details. Paint with words so your readers may enjoy the colors. Thanks S.M.**


	7. Chapter 7: Sal Could See the Valley

**AN: I do not own or operate the characters from Victorious. I just keep them alive. Someone else owns them and has already made a fortune from them. **

**Enjoy S.M.**

Chapter 7: Sal Could See the Valley

As we drove through the streets I had something to say and didn't know how to bring it up to Tori. Sometimes it is better to just come out and say it rather than to let it simmer and eat away at you.

"Tori,"

"Yes" she said smiling at me.

"Yesterday when I left you with Andre the two of you were drinking when I got home."

"Ya I had a couple of beer, so what of it?"

"Well by the looks of things yesterday, you can't hold your alcohol. That is a dangerous situation. When people drink they do stupid things, I should know. I have to know that you have all your wits. The world is depending on you finding the power source and if you make a stupid or drunk mistake, you die and the world with it. Do you understand what I am saying?" I asked hoping that she would see it my point.

She sat silent for a long time. Then she answered. "I know. I know you are right Jade, but I just wanted to feel normal one last time and having a drink with Andre seemed about as close as I would get. I didn't do it to make you angry or to endanger the world. I did it for me." Tori stared down at the floor of the car.

"Look I am not saying that you can no longer have any fun or have Andre as a friend, I am saying I need you to have your head in the game at all times. I don't know what I would do if you her harmed or worse." I said taking some of the sting off of what I had said.

I quickly changed the subject and gave us something else to focus on. I drove slowly past the Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard. It once was a glorious place back when Grauman owned it. Then Mann bought it and started renovating it and took away most of the flavour. Now TLC owns it and it is nothing but a scummy tourist trap.

I drove around a while and then found a place to park in a run-down lot. We went to the doors of the theatre and looked around. "Do you think that you will feel it?"

"I don't know. I hope so." Tori replied.

"Do you think that this is the place?" I asked.

"I am not sure. Maybe we should take the tour and see if anything comes to me." Tori said with eyes that told me she was trying.

I told her that I knew she was doing her best and that neither of us really knew what we were doing. I gave her a small side hug and kept looking around.

We got in line to get tickets for the tour and paid for the tour tickets. The girl at the window said it would start in about ten minutes. We decided that we would just wait over at the side. That was a mistake.

This is a shameful place. At one time it was everything glamourous about Hollywood and the movies, now it is a tourist trap filled with hawkers, buskers and pickpockets.

We hadn't been standing there for a minute and a guy dressed as superman came walking over. He reached for Tori's arm and I pushed him off.

"Hey maybe the little lady wants her picture taken with a real superhero!" the clown said.

"Step off Clark Kent she is with her superhero!" I said staring him down.

"Well let's just ask the girl if she wants a photo taken with the Man of Steel or not?" he said leering at Tori.

I opened my jacket just enough to show him the handle of my gun and then zipped up my leather jacket again. "So man of Steel, those balls made of steel. I hope so. Can they stop bullets too?"

Superman backed away slowly with a scared look on his face. He might have even peed himself a little. Once he was a respectful distance from us he turned and ran. I wish I had a justifiable reason to shoot him. I hate what these freaks have done to my city.

We took the tour. Neither of us listened as the guide lead us through the costumes and memorabilia in the entry.

"Why are you staring at her ass?" Tori asked with an angry tone.

"Who? What?" I stammered.

"The guide. You are staring at her ass every chance you get. Do you want her ass? Are you picturing her naked and wrapping those long black legs around you?" She was getting more upset.

"Ah no…. well ya okay for a minute, but you have to admit she has a great ass! It is only you that I want to be wrapped naked up legs …. or whatever you said." I was cooked.

"Nice attempt at a save there Jade." Tori softened.

"Forgive me?"

"Yes okay." She kissed me on the cheek. "You are right she does have a great ass."

"Is anything coming to you in her Tori? Do you feel anything different?"

"No I don't think that this is the place. We should go try somewhere else." Tori said.

That was when I spotted 'Superman' talking to a couple of cops out front of the theatre. I could see them through the glass, but because it was darker inside they couldn't see us. I nudged Tori's arm. She gasped when she saw them.

"I think it is time for our tour to be over." I said ushering her to a side door that said exit.

We shielded our eyes from the bright sun as we hit the alley. I took Tori by the hand and ran. It didn't take long before we were at the car. We were long gone by the time that the police were searching the theatre.

I pulled into a drive through coffee shop I liked and we ordered. Tori loves iced coffee, but I have never liked cold coffee. We then did some more brainstorming as we drove.

"What about the beach?" Tori asked.

"Tori I know you love the sun and the beach, but we have to solve this puzzle." I said.

"No I was thinking of that rock cove in Sana Monica with all the star fish." She said.

"Does that feel right?" I asked.

That was when the rear side window blew out of my car. I grabbed Tori by the hair and threw Tori to the floor of the car as I turned into the nearest lot. I got out and ran to her side of the car and pulled her out onto the ground. "Are you okay?"

"Yes. What happened?"

"Someone took a shot at us." I had the glock out and was scanning the street. Then I saw him. He was across the street and slightly behind a truck.

Another round went through the front quarter panel of my car. That was when I saw the movement out of the corner of my eye. He was just the distraction and his partner was circling around.

I spun around to see the figure aim a pistol at Tori. I pulled down on him and put a bullet right in his forehead. I guess all those video games do pay off. The Cor went down and didn't ever get to fire his gun. I then turned on the original shooter. He was running.

I shouted at Tori, "Get in the car!"

She climbed back in and I ran to the driver's side. The car was still running although it was making a sound now. I guess taking a round will do that to an engine. I didn't care. This guy was not going to get away.

I squirted out between traffic and turned left at the corner. I saw him running up an alley he wasn't expecting me. I bounced across the curb and into the alley. I spun the tires in the gravel and straightened out the car. Now I had him in my sights.

He turned and fired a couple of wild shots at us, but missed by a mile. I was gaining on him. I am sure he thought I was going to shoot him. He turned and faced me and raised his gun. That was when I struck him with the front of the car. He flew up and through the windshield.

I slammed the car in park and jumped out. He was still moving and tried to aim his gun at Tori. I finished him off with a round to the head and got back in the car and drove off. We made our way home without getting pulled over by the police.

The car and the house were done for us now. We had to get what we needed and get out. The police would be all over the place before long. I watched as Tori grabbed her stuff. I always kept a bag packed in the trunk just in case I either got lucky or had to split.

We left the car with a tarp pulled over it so that the damage wouldn't be noticeable. It wasn't long before Andre pulled up out front.

"So where are we going ladies?" Andre said.

"For now just drive. Ah maybe spin over to the Chinese Theatre." I said.

"In the mood for some Hollywood kitsch?" Andre asked.

"No I just want to see something in that neighborhood." I covered.

We drove for a long time and then we ended up back where had been that morning. I first had him pull into the lot where I shot that first guy. I knew that there would be police tape up so they could do their investigation.

"So why did you want to pull in here?" Andre asked.

"I um … just wanted to see something." I looked around and there was nothing to be seen. There were no police and no sign of them ever being there doing an investigation. What happened? Where did the body go?

I had Andre go over to the alley where I took out the last guy. There should be a large dried pool of blood where the guy bled out. There would be police here for sure.

Once again there was nothing. You could see where someone had used shovels and brooms to clean up the blood. They even took care of the tire tracks as well. If I hadn't been there when the shooting happened, I wouldn't have believed that a shootout had taken place.

It was like Wally had said, the Cor take's care of things and cleans up after themselves. There was no way this event was going to make the news. It just didn't happen.

The one thing I did know from this situation that I didn't want to share with Tori was that each time they came at us they came harder. We were in for a world of hurt.

From Hollywood we drove down to the beach and sat and watched the waves break on the shore. I needed time to think. Tori could tell I was lost in my mind so she took Andre and the two of them walked down to splash in the water but not so far that I could keep an eye on them.

Where the hell was this source of power? Why are they so concerned with covering up their losses? So far we have been lucky, neither of us have been seriously hurt. I just wish I was more in control of things. Normally I tip the odds so that I control every situation, but not this time.

Andre and Tori were fooling around and he pushed her down. That was when I saw the small splash in the water just beyond her. Then another in the sand beside her. I couldn't put anything in words, but I knew what was happening. I dove forward and covered her with my body.

I felt the bullet skim my shoulder and I grabbed her up and ran to cement blocks that were there to break up the high tide. Just as I pushed Tori down behind I felt the slug hit my back. The round was slowed down by the vest, but I felt it go into my ribs. Instantly the air went out of my lung and I fell to my knees.

I couldn't hear Tori's voice but she was shouting in my face. I knew I had to get my senses back. I had to be in control at this moment. Andre kept Tori down as I popped up and scanned the scene looking for the shooter. I knew I was dealing with a sniper and would never see them, but I drew my gun anyway. Andre's eyes almost fell out of his head.

I was losing consciousness and could feel it. I had to make sure the situation was calm before I let go. There was a squeal of tires and a car flew by ripping the beach up with automatic rifle fire. We all ducked down behind the breaker block. I returned fire as they sped off. I put two rounds through the back window and then fell unconscious.

Andre carried to his car and put me in the backseat. Tori held me as he drove. He wanted to take me to a hospital, but Tori told him to take me to Cat's house. Her parents were with her brother at the special clinic he was being held in. Cat would be alone in the big house in the hills.

"We have to stop her bleeding before she bleeds to death." Andre shouted at Tori while looking in the rear view mirror.

He thought that Tori had become catatonic with shock, but the truth was she had gone to the place she needed to go to heal. She held her hand over my wound but did not touch it. She poured her energy into me and I could feel the blood stop flowing out of my wound. That was all she could do in the car. The rest would have to wait until later.

When I came to the next time I was laying on Cat's rug in her living room. Tori was pulling my shirt off and had me on my side. Andre was helping support my weight. Cat made him look away as they opened my vest and pulled it free.

They laid me down on my front and I was now stripped to the waist. Tori had stopped the bleeding in the car, but the bullet was still inside my ribs on my right side. If the vest and my ribs hadn't slowed the bullet down it would have done more than punctured a lung.

My breathing was raspy and painful. I couldn't speak or move. I was there, but somehow not. I was trapped in my body and at their mercy. That was when the memories or hallucinations started.

I was back to when I was a little girl. My mother was there and we were in the kitchen in the house I grew up in. We were alone except for the 'shimmer girl'.

When I was young I had a playmate. She was real, but she wasn't. I know inside that she wasn't my imagination. I called her the 'shimmer girl' because she was only a shimmer. It was like looking at a mirage on a hot highway. The water isn't there, but your mind tells you that it is.

I was never afraid of her. She was kind and friendly, but also a bit sad. She was small and had dark long hair. Her face was never easy to focus on. Sometimes when I turned quick and looked at her from the side of my eyes I could see her better, but then she would go all fuzzy again.

I asked my mother about her that day in the kitchen and she dismissed me. She told me that I was very imaginative and she hugged me. The shimmer girl just watched. I could feel her more than see her. She was sad. She wanted to feel that hug as well, but she could not she was different than the rest of us and I could feel it.

She was not complete. I couldn't put it into words, but I was very aware that she was different. If I had to put a word to it I guess I would have to say that she was hollow or empty inside. A part of her was not there and that was what made her sad.

I asked her one time why she was empty. She told me that needed the space for something bigger. I asked her what and she told me that she didn't know, but what she told me next stayed with me for years.

The shimmer girl told me that I was her and she was me. I didn't understand and when I asked her what she meant she told me that she was empty and I was over filled. I still didn't understand her.

In the years that followed she came to me less and less. I guess I outgrew her as I went to school and made real friends and my life got complicated and busy. I soon forgot what she look like and more so what she felt like. Then she was gone.

Why was the shimmer girl coming back to my mind now? Why after all these years was I thinking about her now? Then I drifted back into darkness.

Cat started to panic when she saw the wound. Andre tried to calm her down. That was when they saw Tori. She was completely focused on the wound. She was breathing slowly and deeply. They had no idea that she had taken over my breathing and doing my breathing for me.

That was when I felt her hand over my wound and the heat and energy flowing into the wound. It hurt like hell and I wanted to scream, but I couldn't. I remember thinking that gossamer was supposed to be soft and delicate, but this was anything but that. Why did they call this the gossamer touch then?

I could feel the bullet start to move. It was hot and it burned as it tore its way back out of my body.

"Look the bullet is coming out of her!" Cat said excitedly.

I heard it fall to the floor. The pain had turned to a dull throb from the hot burning. After a few moments I felt my lung re-inflate and I was able to breathe on my own again. When another five minutes had passed Cat proclaimed that the wound had healed itself. I knew it did not do it on its own.

Tori collapsed over me with exhaustion. She was soaked with sweat and now she was out of breath. I was able to move again, but I didn't I just let her lay across my back. Our energies merging helped to stabilize both of us.

After a time Cat helped Tori to the couch to have a seat. I slowly got up on my own. That was when I realized that I was half nude. I covered the girls and gave Andre a death stare.

"I didn't look. I didn't see…. much!" he said with an evil grin.

I took my clothes to the bathroom and had a look in the mirror. Tori did good work I would have a scar, but I was indeed healed. I was still stiff and put on my now torn shirt slowly.

I ran the sink and splashed some water in my face. I dried off and returned to the others in the living room.

I didn't speak to anyone, I went to Tori and hugged her. She melted into my arms. She needed the hug as much as I did. I kissed her on her forehead and then on the lips. She started to come back to our world slowly. That was when I realized that the others were staring at us.

I explained that Tori and I were a couple now and they seemed to take that in stride. In fact they didn't even care. It was why someone shot at us that they wanted to know the most about.

I looked at Tori and she nodded. That was when Tori told them everything. They had no choice but to believe her now. She told them all about the people who had come after us and the ones that I had to kill and then how all traces of the shootings were erased.

I slowly moved around the living room. I had never been inside Cat's house. I had picked her up in my car a few times, but was never inside. It was a large Malibu home. The kind that was built by the onetime movers and shakers of days gone by.

I ran my hands over some of the antiques that decorated this room. That was when Cat approached me from behind. I jumped a little, but not enough to call startled.

"Do you like antiques Jade?" Cat asked.

"I was just admiring the room." I said.

"It is too bad that the view is blocked now. They say that at one time you could see right out over the city. The person that my dad bought it from said that it was built by a movie star." She bubbled.

"Who was the star? Anyone that I might know?" I asked.

"I can never remember his name. It was San Mateo." She said.

"Cat that is a place not a person!" I corrected rather sharply.

"No that is how I remember it. It is not San Mateo but something similar. San Mineo!?" she pondered.

"Would it have been Sal Mineo?" I asked.

"Yes that is it. Sal Mineo! I am not sure who he was, but I guess he was famous." She lost interest and moved on.

"Sal Mineo…" I said aloud thing about him and his life.

That was when Tori came and stood next to me. She took my hand and for some reason we both closed our eyes at the same time and the image of Sal was shared. Then she whispered, "That is it. That is where we will find the power. Jade, Sal was there he was near the power."

I knew enough not to question her, but I had no idea what she was talking about and for me I was no closer to knowing where the power was. I would do everything necessary to find it.

**AN: Let me know what you think. I know that a shooting in Hollywood would be hard to cover up, especially with all those tourist cameras. I guess you just have to suspend your disbelief, after all it is a work of fiction. Maybe the Cor has a "flashy thing" from Men in Black. ****J****Thanks S.M.**


	8. Chapter 8: Shoot Out at the GO Coral

**AN: I do not own or operate the characters from Victorious. I just keep them alive. Someone else owns them and has already made a fortune from them. **

**Enjoy S.M.**

Chapter 8: Shoot Out At the G.O. Coral

"Cat, can we look around?" I asked.

"Ya sure, let's go look around. What do you want to see?" Our red headed friend asked.

"Let's go down to the basement and start there." I said.

"What are you looking for?" Andre asked.

"I don't know, but I will know when I see it." I said.

Cat took us through the entire house. We looked at every room in the house. It was a nice house, but it had been redone a lot of times. Tori and I didn't find the source. I don't know where the source was, but it wasn't here. I did know that Sal Mineo had something to do with all of this.

"Who is this Sal Mineo that you keep talking about?" Andre asked.

"He was an actor. He had a very short career. He was nominated for the big one twice, but never won. He was blackballed because he was gay. He lived here for a while before he moved to an apartment in West Hollywood. He was robbed and murdered. He was only 37 years old." I said.

I flopped down on the couch next to Tori and Cat went to get us drinks. I stared out the window into the blocked view and thought about the situation. I was far away when Andre called to me to bring me back.

"Jade, Jade! I asked if I would know any movies that Sal was in." Andre said louder.

"He was in a bad Disney film and in Rebel Without a Cause and Giant." I said. "That is it! I think I know where the Source is!"

"I am not going to Texas. It is supposed to be here in L.A." Tori said.

"No not Giant. Rebel Without a Cause!"

"That movie was cursed!" Cat said.

"Cursed?" Andre asked.

"Ya the three lead actors all died very young. They were all going to be huge stars, but Sal was murdered, Natalie Wood drown in the ocean and James Dean was killed when some idiot crossed the center line and drove headlong into his car. Such a loss." I said.

"Where do we have to go?" Tori asked.

"Most of the movie took place in three locations. They were at the police station, an old mansion and The Griffith Observatory. The police station was a sound stage at Warner Brothers along with the cliff and the old mansion. They will be long gone by now. So that means that there is only one real location and that must be where we are to go." I said waiting for the rest to catch on.

"The Griffith Observatory!" They all said together.

"Nice sitcom moment guys." I laughed. "Andre I need your car."

"No I saw what you did to your car." Andre said.

"Good point, but would you rather be behind the wheel when the same people are shooting at us again?" I asked.

"No but nobody better be shooting at my car!" Andre said holding the keys.

I took his keys and told him to stay and look after Cat. I grabbed my holster, vest and jacket and Tori's wrist and I dragged her out the door to Andre's car. We had a fair drive at this time of day and had to get moving.

We were silent as we drove to the Observatory. Neither of us knew what to say. This was the real deal, up until know it was kind of a game abet with live rounds. We were either going save the world or ….

When we arrived at the Observatory the place was empty. They must be closed. The parking lot was empty and there was no sign of anyone, but the Strueds Cor was there. I could feel them. The hair was standing up on the back of my neck and all of my senses were on high alert.

I moved around to Tori's side of the car and took her hand. I told her to stay low and we would run to the edge of the parking lot where there was a hedge we could take temporary cover. We were almost there when a woman with an automatic rifle stepped out from a corner.

She stitched the air around us. The gun had more power than she could handle. I raised my gun and put four rounds in her chest. She stood there for a moment in disbelief before she looked down at her blood covered body and fell to her knees and then backward.

A shot rang out from behind us. I felt the slug hit my back. The vest stopped it, but I knew it was going to bruise and maybe break another rib. I staggered and fell to the ground. I was having a hard time catching my breath. I could hear his heavy foot falls coming towards me.

I was not going to go out like this. I couldn't do anything but extend my leg towards Tori. She saw what I was intending and grabbed for the small auto that I had velcroed to my ankle. In a moment she was pointing the gun at the assailant. He stopped for a second in his tracks. He didn't expect to be facing a second gun.

Before he could draw down on Tori I got my wind back and I rolled and put a round in his knee. He was knocked backward. I then swept the good leg out from under him. I holstered my gun and pounced on him. I delivered a solid punch to the chest. I then slid behind him and wrapped my arms around his head and his neck.

"Look away Tori!" I shouted.

She looked at me puzzled and then she looked away. As soon as her eyes were diverted I gave a short sharp twist and broke his neck. He was done. He would not be interfering any more.

I took a moment to breathe. It was painful but I was glad that I could still take a breath. I lay back down for a minute. Tori came over to me and helped me up. She handed me back the gun. I put it back in the ankle holster.

I got up and we made our way to the front doors. They were locked. I told her that we should go around the side and try to get in another way. I found a fire escape door and tried the door. It was locked too. I reached in my back pocket and took out a small leather folder.

We all have a past, well accept Tori, in my past I did a lot of things and learning to pick locks was a handy skill for getting into trouble. I inserted the T wrench and selected a pick.

"What are you doing? Where did you learn to pick locks?" Tori asked.

"Well they wouldn't give me a set of keys for the school." I grinned.

I moved the pick back and forth listening for the little clicks. I then smiled at Tori as I turned the T wrench and the door opened. I listened for alarms, but there were none. That means one of two things. There isn't an alarm or the Cors turned it off and are waiting inside.

I grabbed Tori's hand and in we went. I didn't have to ask Tori what she was thinking she was transferring her thoughts into my brain through my hand. I knew that we were in the right place. I could feel the energy of the Source.

That is when I heard the sound of a footstep to my right. I drew down and I was facing three Cor holding guns on us. There was nothing that we could do. They advanced and they took my gun. I hoped that they would leave me with ankle hideout. No such luck. One of them must have been watching the parking lot. He bent down and ripped it off my ankle. Another Cor relieved me of my Bowie knife.

They grabbed us and shoved us along in front of them as we made our way down a dark hallway. We must have been heading toward the mechanical room. The noise of machines grew steadily louder as we went.

The lights were dim in the boiler room. There were two more Streuds Cor. These two must have been in charge. The Cor that captured us showed them respect and approached without saying anything. They simply presented us to them.

"Leave that one. Kill that one." The one Cor told our guards.

The one that was holding me grabbed my arms a little harder and dragged me out of the room. We went down a small cement hallway. When I saw the exit sign I knew it was now or never. I made my move.

I relied on my training. I stomped down on the top of the foot of the guy on the right. I felt bones break beneath my boot. I then thrust upward with my hand under the chin of the guy on the left. I spun and kicked the first guy in the chest. He went down. I followed up with punch to the second guy.

The second guy managed to dodge my strike. We locked into a back and forth fight. The vest I was wearing actually helped stop the blows. I knew that I had to fight only one at a time. If it turned into two on one I would be finished.

I grabbed his arm and pulled and when it was stretched out I punched him repeatedly in the kidney. Hitting someone in the liver or the kidneys takes energy out of them. They become sapped of their energy because the body wants to protect life and it is telling you to stop fighting.

He went down hard and I kicked him in the ribs.

I turned to the first guy, Mr. Big Mustache, just in time to see his fist crash into my nose. My face was covered in blood and the pain shot into my brain. All I could see was black.

I shook my head trying to clear the blood and the darkness from my brain. Light started coming back quickly and my vision although blurred allowed me to see Mr. Mustache.

He punched me in the stomach, but my vest came down far enough to spread out the force of the punch. Something that Master Ray told me was that in a real fight you must fight to live not to win. There is no referee and no rules in a street fight.

Well Master Ray would have been proud. I waited until Mustache threw his next punch and I stepped aside and let him extend his arm. I grabbed it and slammed it into the wall. While he was still stunned I did it again. This time I heard bones breaking. Now he had hand and foot injuries he was out of the fight.

I looked down to see Cor number two trying to get up. I brought my boot down on the back of his neck. He died from a broken neck.

I reached down and took back my Bowie knife from him. I saw Mustache trying to escape and I drove my knife into his back and into his lung. As he lay on the floor next to his partner I retrieved my knife and wiped it clean on his shirt.

I heard Tori scream and I turned towards the sound and ran to where she was. The last of the Cor were going to kill Tori. One was holding her and the other was holding a knife to her throat.

I had to think fast. I showed them my hands so that they would know that they were empty. I had one chance at this and I had to get it right. I was too far away to make use of my big knife. I could go for my guns, but that was too slow. I had to make my move or Tori was gone.

I reached around my back and pulled out my two throwing knives. I threw one and then the other. The first went through the forehead of the guy holding Tori. The second found a home in the back of the Cor that was holding the knife to Tori's throat. Both men fell to the ground.

I ran to Tori and held her as she cried. "I thought that I was going to die and the world would be taken by the Cor." She freely cried letting all the stress of the last couple of months fall away.

Once she had managed to get herself under control we could start looking for the Source.

"You must have been practising with the throwing knives!" she said with a smile.

"Just luck I guess." I lied with a smirk. "Can you feel the Source anywhere?"

"Yes I am close." She said as she started walking away from me.

I followed her to a very large cast iron tank. It looked like at one time it might have been a part of a boiler system. Tori closed her eyes and stood very stiff. The tank started to vibrate and make a banging sound. Soon it opened like a clam shell and a pillar of yellow green light was standing in the center.

"We came all this way for a giant glow stick?" I said sarcastically.

Tori never acknowledged my comment or that I was even there. She simply reached her hands out to the glowing tube of bubbling liquid. This is want she was born to do. This is what she existed for. I had no idea if she would fall down dead after she touched it or if she would explode.

I stepped back a little. She stared straight into the light then she placed both hands on the sides of the tube. It started to boil even faster. That was when I knew the trouble with the Cor was not over.

I don't know if I felt something or heard something. Maybe I just knew what was going to happen. I ran up the stairs to the front doors. I pushed on the crash bar on the door and put the little foot stand down then I went out into the parking lot. I shaded my eyes from the bright sunlight and I could see vehicles of all description heading our way.

"Dammit, Dammit Tori! It is like a beacon. They must have known when she touched it. Shit!" I ran back inside and kicked the little stand back down. I ran around gathering up all the guns that I could find. This was going to be my last stand and my Sundance Kid was down holding a giant glow stick.

I knew I would lose, but I planned on taking as many of them with me as I could. I dragged some heavy furniture into the foyer and started loading guns. I had them all laid out on the ground around me where I could reach them. It reminded me of the scene from the movie The Alamo where they loaded all the guns and sat waiting for the dawn attack. Then I remembered that the Texans lost and were all killed, so I pushed the image out of my head.

I waited to make my move. I wanted as many of the Cor to come to the front door as possible. Then I would start the music. I flexed my fingers on the triggers of the two nine mil autos in my hands. I had to be patient.

Then it happened. The first guy came and tried the door and it did not open. Others came up and joined him. They cupped their hands by their eyes and pressed their faces to the glass. That was when I popped up and started unloading the thirty rounds in my hands.

The guy at the door took one in the head and fell before he knew what hit him. The others started going for their guns but fell as well. Now the return fire started. Glass was flying everywhere and the walls were tearing up around me. My barricade held. It was soaking up the lead. I dropped out the clips and popped in two more. I fired until they were empty dropping a couple more of the Cor.

They were starting to move around the sides. I knew that they were trying to flank me. It is what I would have done too. I took a round in the chest and went down for a minute. That was going to leave more than a bruise. When I came up the next time I took a round to arm.

I put down two more guys and then took a round in the leg. I felt bones breaking. This was it. I was going to write the final scene now. I picked up my guns and stood up and started unloading them.

**AN: Let me know what you think. Please leave feedback. Please. I am not above begging. It is the only way writers get better. I am so evil for making a cliff hanger. There will be one more chapter. I just have to figure out how I want this to end. ****J****Thanks S.M.**


	9. Chapter 9: And This Is What I Get

**AN: I do not own or operate the characters from Victorious. I just keep them alive. Someone else owns them and has already made a fortune from them. **

Chapter 9: And This Is What I Get

Tori felt that the time had come to lay her hands on the Source. This was what she was destine to do. Once she lay her hands on the Source she would become a conduit for the energy within and reset the world's timeline.

She could hear the sounds from above, but they sounded very far away. She knew that Jade was dying. She could feel her pain and her life leaving her. That was when Tori placed her hands sides of the tube and closed her eyes.

The energy went into her body and out of her through her skin. It was like she was melting and exploding all at the same time. She was suddenly filled with all the knowledge of the universe. She became fully aware of everyone in the world.

I was about to come charging out like in a western movie, but as I took the first step it was like the world outside the observatory exploded. A pulse wave knocked me down and picked up speed as it blew out the remaining glass in the building. The Cor that were alive were hit with the wave and instead of knocking them down it was far more deadly. They started to glow like the tube downstairs. I could hear them screaming in pain and then they exploded and the energy dissipated from them.

It was quiet. I could hear my heart beating in my ears. The pain was incredible. I had no idea whether Tori was alive or dead. All I could do is lay on the cool marble floor and bleed. That was the last thing I remember before I blacked out.

I came to when I felt the old compress being placed on my forehead. My eyes were clouded, but I could make out lights and colors. I could hear voices, but they were far away and I couldn't make out what they were saying.

A nurse put her face over mine. She yelled at me, "Jade, can you hear me Jade? Are you in there! Jade, I need you to come back and talk to us Jade!"

"Ah…. I … hear you." I croaked although my voice was not all that stable.

"You were in a shooting. You were found on the street in Hollywood. It seems there is a gang war and you were caught in the cross fire. You are going to be okay. We took the bullets out and patched you up. You are going to be okay." She said.

"uhh… what about *cough, cough* the girl …. I was with?" I tried to ask about Tori without saying too much.

"There was no one with you. You were alone." She said. "She is still foggy."

"But ….there was….." I tried.

"There was no girl. A guy named Wally Smith found you in the street and called 911. You came in alone in the ambulance. No one has been in yet to visit you." She said.

I lay there trying to figure out what happened. Was Tori dead? Did anyone know where I was and what happened? Why aren't the cops here? I shot the hell out of the Griffith Observatory. I should be in chains, but I wasn't.

I drifted back into unconsciousness. When I came to again there were flowers. I tried to reach for the card to read it, but it was too far away and pain shot through my body. I fell back on the bed.

A nurse came in and asked me if I could tolerate a visitor. I was sure it was going to be Tori, but it was Cat Valentine.

She came in all bubbly and Cat-like. She made me smile for a few moments. She was asking all kinds of questions about what happened and who shot me. She was acting like she had no idea what was happening.

"You don't have to pretend Cat. No one else is here." I said.

"What are you talking about, pretending? I tried to read Cat's face, but she was not pretending. She was not making anything up.

"How is Tori?" I asked.

"Ah fine I guess. Why?" Cat asked with a very confused look on her face.

"So she is alive? Thank god." I said.

"Why would she not be alive?" Cat asked.

"Well she was with me at the …. street."

"She wasn't with you. You don't even like her. Why would you be shopping with her in Hollywood?" Cat said now very confused.

"Ya, well I guess I am still not quite with it yet." I covered.

She decided that she was staying too late and that I needed rest. She left and left me with more questions than answers. I was thinking about Tori and what went down at the Griffith. I drifted off again.

When I came to a nurse was fussing over me doing something with my bandages. I just lay there and let her do her job. Normally I would have given her a hard time, but I just didn't have the energy. When she left the room I watched her go.

I jumped when he stepped out from behind the door. I am sure the nurse had no idea that he was there.

"So are you getting better?" Wally said in his low gruff voice.

"I guess. I have some questions." I said.

"I am sure you do. Let me try to explain. See Tori and you were connected from the time you were young. You know that. She was an empty shell she had no past and no future she was an instrument in a mission." He said.

"So she doesn't exist? But Cat just said that she was fine and…"

"Oh she is fine. Well a Tori Vega. Not the one that you grew to know and fall in love with. That girl was destroyed when she lay her hands on the Source. The Tori that is alive and well thinks of you as someone who plays pranks on her and makes her life a living hell. To her you are a jerk, a …"

"…gank. Ya I know." I said suddenly full of remorse and self-realization.

"This is what has always happened. You complete the mission and then you part and go your separate ways. She will now have a full life and you will too. The Empty One never remembers the events only the protector. You will get over it in time. It has to be this way. One day you might be needed as a guide, like me."

"Well this fucking sucks! I was shot and beaten over and over to save this girl. I fell in love with her. She gave me a real reason to live and to fight and now I am just to forget about that? I don't think so." I said shouting at this strange being.

"There is nothing that I can do. It has always been this way. I know it hurts, trust me I know, but I can't change it." Wally defended the situation.

"Can't you go and plead for us with whoever is in charge of all this? I did what you asked without questioning and now I am asking you for this one little thing. Please Wally go and beg the big them to let us know each other like we did. You might as well let me die at the observatory." I continued to holler.

He a daisy that was in the bouquet of flowers and then turned to leave.

"So that is it? Not even a thanks for saving the world? You just turn and leave?"

"It was never my world!" He said and then disappeared out the door never to be seen again.

A nurse came in and asked who I was yelling at. I told her the man that just left my room. She said that there was no one who left my room. She had been right outside my room going over a chart with another nurse. She chalked it up to medicated hallucinations. Then she gave me another shot and sent me on my way to fuzzyland once again.

I was healing physically, but I was sinking into the depths of depression. All I wanted in life was Tori. I never knew that until we came together on this journey. Now I shall never have her. We shared an intimacy deeper than sex. I protected her and she healed me in so many ways.

Some days in the hospital were lonely. I kept expecting Tori to come skipping through the door. She never did.

My parents did finally come home and see me in the hospital. They put on a big show of how concerned they were about my wellness. They threw around some money and got me moved to a private room once I was out of ICU. It just about made me sick.

I did have some company while I was in the hospital. Cat came every day and once and awhile she would bring Andre. Even Beck came to see me. Apparently in this time frame we were still dating. He came and broke it off with me. I think he was surprised that I didn't cry and carry on.

Admittedly, I was actually glad that he called it quits. I no longer had any feelings for him. I have been over him for months in my timeline. It was strange that time seemed to stand still while all this was going on, but for me so much had passed.

One of the best days was the day that I was released and allowed to go home to recover there. As soon as my parents found that I was fine to be by myself, they both went their separate ways and it would be weeks before I saw them again.

The doctors cleared me to go back to school. I was grateful it would be a distraction from being trapped alone in a big house with nothing but your thoughts. Sleep was the first victim. I finally slept when I was so exhausted that I couldn't stand any more. So school was just what I needed in some ways.

I would probably lose the semester, but at least there would be some normalcy. Even if I could never have the same relationship with her I would still see Tori every day. Maybe with a lot of work someday I might be able to slowly start something and then one day have something again with the woman I love.

I woke up early in order to pick just the right outfit to wear. I must have tried on over ten different things. I finally settled on what I saw as my sexiest outfit. I was wearing a green plaid short kilt and a white blouse. I put those over black tights and wore my black boots. I put a green streak in my hair that matched the skirt.

I took a deep breath and pushed the door open. I looked around, but didn't see anyone, by anyone I meant Tori. I strolled to my locker and spun the dial. I managed to open it on the first try. I had my back to the foyer and had let my guard down. Two months ago I would never have left myself that exposed.

I heard Cat before I saw her. I just had time to turn and brace myself before she threw her arms around me and almost knocked me over.

"It is so good to see you here!" Cat squealed.

"It is good to see you too Cat." I said grimacing in some pain.

"Hey good to see you up and dressed." Andre said.

"Watch it Harris!" I said with a grin.

"Jade believe it or not we missed you around here." Beck said giving me a hug.

"I missed you guys too." I said noticing Tori at her locker over Beck's shoulder.

I grabbed my books and my little entourage moved towards our first class with Sikowitz. As we passed Tori's locker I decided to go along with the pretense.

"Vega!" I said not looking at her.

"West!" She returned.

I was going to walk on by her but she tripped me and I grabbed at her to regain my balance but pulled her down on top of me. Tori looked me in the eye and she said, "So if I stay on top of you will you break your promise and take things further?" She winked and helped me to my feet and then went off to class.

The End

**AN: That is the Gossamer Touch. Please leave feedback. I hope you enjoyed this story. It was hard for me to write. I wasn't always sure where it was going. I had to let the story sit and develop and let the characters tell me what to write. I love open ended stories that let the reader make up their own mind as to what happens. ****J****Thanks S.M.**


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